“Introduction to Poznań. A Guide to the Heart of the City” – a meeting with Joanna Lip, Justyna Śmidowicz, and Jagoda Jankowska

Five years ago, three women from Poznań — Asia, Justyna, and Jagoda — met and came up with the idea of creating a guide to Poznań unlike any other. It was meant to stand out through its photography, aesthetic, concise descriptions, and selection of places. The routes featured a wide range of attractions, from the most iconic landmarks to abandoned tenement houses and hidden courtyards.

The project premiered on March 21 and is available at www.poznanskakamienica.pl.

At the same time, an exhibition was held at Przystań Sztuki, inviting visitors to look at Poznań up close — attentively, unhurriedly, and with sensitivity to detail. The photographs by Justyna Śmidowicz were created over four years of work on the guidebook Introduction to Poznań.

During the preparation, over five thousand photographs were taken. Each was an attempt to capture the character of the city: its architecture, streets, light streaming into gates and courtyards, and traces of the past etched into its buildings. From this extensive material emerged a guide describing over two hundred places in central Poznań.

The photographs displayed in the exhibition are not merely illustrations of architecture. They document the city’s evolution: patient observation, waiting for the right light, and returning to the same locations at different times of day and year.

The exhibition served as a visual complement to the guidebook while also standing as an independent story of the creative journey — over four years of collaborative work, dedication, attentiveness, and the warm relationship that developed between the project’s co-authors. This is an introduction not only to the city itself but also to a way of experiencing it — an invitation to see Poznań through a woman’s perspective.

About the authors:

Asia Lip – city guide, known for the profile @poznanska_kamienica

Justyna Śmidowicz – photographer, painter, visual artist

Jagoda Jankowska – graphic designer and illustrator

The event was funded by the city of Poznań #poznanwspiera

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