Behind

Graduated FAUT (Timișoara Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism) in 2021. While working as a full time architect I'm also engaged in an academic career, as a teaching assistant at FAUT, since 2023, where my contribution is made for both theoretical and practical courses. My work as a photographer revolves around exploring and capturing unique scenes or viewpoints that express a deeper understanding behind the complex relationship between a piece of architecture and its context. I believe they should enhance each other and work together. Great architecture is one that stands out by fitting perfectly in a place.

The city of Prague is home to some of the most famous works by Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik. In search of his architecture, one comes across the Church of The Most Sacred Heart of Our Lord, which is located in one of Prague’s most elegant neighborhoods, Vinohrady. The monument stands in a park surrounded by magnificent, 19th-century stately residential buildings embroidered in rich ornaments. Shortly after arriving at my destination by tram, I was surprised to discover that the entire public park was being renovated. Entrapped behind a tall metal fence, the church can only be seen by climbing the nearby railings of the underground metro. The earthy tone of its facade, textured by brick elements and disrupted by a clean, white pediment at the top, now blends with the dark, soft ground that has been excavated as it almost completely covers it from certain vantage points. Only the cross remains visible, as if this sacred place had only recently been buried. Almost everywhere you stand, the sound of machinery can be heard, interrupted only briefly by the ringing of the church bell. Next to the construction site, in the shadow of the church, is a small weekend market. It is teeming with traders and buyers, families with children and their pets, everyone seems unbothered by the work taking place just a few meters away. Cranes swing above umbrellas and in front of the church tower. The music from the nearby cafes cover the screeching of metal as people go about their day.