UNITED STATES ON POSTCARDS OF POLISH EMIGRANTS 1927-1930
"OCH, AMERYKA" EXHIBITION
From Marian Jachimowicz’s archive.
Exhibition originated and organized by Jacek Czarnik and Małgorzata Laszczak.
There is an expression of different feelings in that sigh. Polish emigrants who went to the United States in search of a better life were bewitched by the monumental buildings, skyscrapers, metropolises vibrant with life and the flashing of millions lights. They also were confronted with the harsh reality of an exhausting struggle with the difficulties of daily life and the hard work needed to support themselves.
„Och, Ameryka”, on display over the summer at the American Corner, displays old postcards of America which present these new immigrants’ concrete, true story. These postcards were sent by one sender to one addressee. The sender was a young lady who married a traveling salesman in the 1920’s. The addressee was her brother who left for the United States with her. While there they drifted apart, but the love and bonds of their family ties were not broken. Although Józefa Jachimowicz traveled with her husband throughout the U.S. for years, her emotional ties to her brother were so great, that she sent postcards to him almost everyday writing them wherever she could, at a theatre lounge, at a railway station, at a restaurant, in a hotel room before falling asleep…
After their deaths, the postcard collection was taken over by Marian Jachimowicz, their younger brother. He was an eminent poet, translator, essayist who spent half of his life in Wałbrzych. He solicitously preserved the postcards of his beloved sister Józia to brother Michał as a beautiful family memento. Thanks to his family, who made his archive available, we can get a glimpse of the America of times gone by, which greeted these hardy and adventurous brother and sister.
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