The uncertainty. The change of eras. The dystopian movie turned real in accordance with all the rules of the genre. Many everyday things and activities that became inaccessible in a flash. Thousands jobs taken from millions of people.
Just imagine the whole world is a stage and an inciting incident just occurred. Something that has never happened before and that intervened with the daily routine, lifestyle and life balance of every single person, on a scale that one could hardly comprehend.
A photographer Maryna Syrovatka explores how the pandemics, massive lockdowns and, ultimately, an extensive ban on work affected business and professions.
These photographs were taken during the second wave of pandemics. The series represents a small episode, a projection from the huge picture of a global scale. Each viewer will find something in common with the subjects, something that affected them as well, directly or indirectly.
Through the lens we can watch the unbelievable. The whole world came to a halt. In the photographs we can see the people, each professional in their own field. People who are business owners, actors, performers, managers, bartenders and many more, forced to close their workspaces. These people have built their work paths based on their life experience and common understanding of the world order. The pandemic shuttered this status quo completely.
Places, where life thrived before, are now quiet. The diary is void. The obscurity is overwhelming.
Work related bans and restrictions were something that no one could ever predict or imagine. A force-majeure that no one ever seriously considered as a probable obstacle to business or career growth. Yet here they are, and most previous knowledge, all those solid numbers, planning and reasoning are no longer applied. The very fulcrum of activity turned void.
I meet my subjects inside their closed workspaces before they undertake any steps. They are trying to absorb the scarce facts: how long the current situation is going to last, if things would ever go back to normal or new reality would set in, if what is happening will end in a deadlock or become a new path. Confusion, anger, hope, frustration, fear, depression – the feelings are perplexed.
This moment of hesitation, this pause seems inevitable but unaffordable, as it is destructive and costly in many ways. The call for decision is urging but any decision is a gamble for a dear price, where one’s life’s work is at stake.
We know nothing yet. We only watch them in the moment.
We invite you to visit the exhibition of the photographer Maryna Syrovatka “Locked workspaces: Facing the Unknown” that will take place in June in Pezinok under the auspices of the Mayor of Pezinok, Ing. arch. Igora Hianika
Artemij Pyžov is the ballet dancer in SND, Slovenské Národné Divadlo (Slovak National Theatre). The theatre closed for public in March 2020. The rehearsals are scarce, all attempts to re-open had failed. The last time Artemij danced on the stage was in February 2020. “In Russia, we could never afford vacations for longer than a couple weeks because one gets out of performing shape very, very fast”. For a ballet dancer, regular training in the rehearsal room is a must. Workouts at home are, of course, necessary but never substantial as it is impossible to maintain them at the same level as in professionally equipped studios. “Such a long break… I do not know how we will recover.” During lockdown, the actors are paid minimum wage that is hard to survive upon. Some fellow performers went to work in retail, warehouses, courier or food delivery services to support their families.
Juraj Kukura is a famous Slovak actor of the European scale, and also a Director of the theatre Divadlo Arena in Bratislava. Due to lockdown restrictions the theatre was closed for most of 2020, with a few breaks. However, the rehearsals in the Theatre Arena are underway, within the restrictions. The theatre is getting ready for the long-planned reconstruction of the building. Juraj Kukura: “Covid is a large-scale disaster, not only for people of my age. On the other side, however, I am discovering greenery, blooms, food, spending more time with the kids; people relations become more and more important. Take care of yourself and the others, because as they say, it was never that bad that could not be worse.”
Mr. M is the ground staff at the airport. While he is required to come to work daily, there is not that much work as it used to be, and no sense of stability. He is also a licensed driving instructor but auto schools are closed now, too. He does not watch TV and lets his beard grow since March 2020.
Mr. N is the aircraft pilot. The company laid him off in 2020. He sent out hundreds of CVs but his top skills and abilities turned out non-applicable to other job positions. So he had to enter the workforce from ground zero, accepting the entry level position at the car factory to get his foot in the door. He started as a general labour, getting up at 4 a.m. for his morning shifts, and worked his way up to management. “In aviation, three years of inactivity is a cut-off line for a pilot. We need to renew the pilot license and at the commander level, as in my case, it gets complicated and very expensive”. The pilots need regular training and flying hours to maintain their skill level and comply with industry regulations. “I hope it will become better…we all hope… But I have a very bad feeling.”
David Žembera is a representative of the famous Exclusive Agency that offers arrangement of concerts, performances and other events in Slovakia. In the very beginning of March 2020, the agency put all equipment and props at the warehouse, and stored it there ever since. With entertainment being one of the most affected industries, David is still hopeful the new season will be better.
Maroš Kramar, a famous Slovak actor, welcomes us at his handcrafted attic apartment “Divadlo vo Veži” in the old city centre of Bratislava. A theatre play Enigma Variations had been on stage in his living room several years in a row, featuring guest actors. At the moment, however, the space is vacant and so is the actor’s day planner. He used to have intense work schedule as well as busy social life. Now this life suddenly came to a halt. He spends his time freed from scurry walking his dog for hours, reading plays, working out or chilling by the water. He is discovering the joys and sorrows of that bizarre idleness for which none of us was ready.
Juraj Hrčka, a Slovak freelance actor, also came to welcome us at Divadlo vo Veži (Theatre in the Tower) where he used to perform as well. Nowadays he dedicates his time to teaching actor students online. He sees his new life rhythm as an opportunity to get new skills, improve in sports and foreign languages, as well as to catch up on books and radio plays. He is fully devoted to self-education and thinks about inspirations for his own novel.
K. works at the reception of Skaritz, a 4-star hotel in central Bratislava. The hotel, as well as many others, does not accept quests anymore. The receptionist says it is so unusual to have empty rooms this time of the year…
Radik Norekyan is a co-founder of a Bratislava downtown night club. “My colleagues put a lot of efforts for this place to thrive. It is so hard to find and train the team, to build the name, to establish trust in regular customers…”. Financial losses are certainly tangible but what bothers him more is that the fruits of the 6-year work are gone, the effective and efficient team is not here anymore.
Maryna Syrovatka @unboxedphoto – photographer, owner www.unboxed.sk
Volodymyr Danylyuk @steamvogue – logistics / support, drone operator / photo
Elina Kovyrnova @elin_ka – assistant, backstage
Olga Muzychenko @muzaolga35 – manager
Anton Parkhomenko @ux4real – exhibition and website design
Irina Konovalova @irenamua – MUAH
Anastasiia Danyliuk – MUAH
