ABOUT THE PROJECT
The project “In This Place” focuses primarily on the outskirts of the former KL Plaszow area: around Jerozolimska Street (location 1) and near Swoszowicka Street (location 2).
The walks in these two locations illustrate how, over time, the area’s development, its audiosphere, urban planning, and its symbolic significance have changed.
LOCATION 1
Human voices – statements from residents, researchers, guides, descendants, decision-makers; individuals who interact with this space in various ways and assign different meanings to it.
The choice of the first location shows how closely the local community operates in proximity to the post-camp space. It explores the extent to which the modern fabric of the area, as well as its residential and service infrastructure, intertwine with the space of violence.
LOCATION 2
Sound elements and recordings relating to the agency of nature and non-human actors.
The choice of the second location is driven by the desire to highlight the nature of this area – its memory and subjectivity, the vegetation, and the way the land is shaped. It also draws attention to the immediate surroundings of this edge of the former camp, which has changed dramatically due to urban development, influencing how it is perceived today.
To move from one point to the other, it is necessary to pass through the central part of the post-camp area, which occupies the largest space. No external sounds are anchored here – the aim is to allow walkers to experience the audiosphere in its current form.
What is the ECHOES platform ?
Echoes.xyz allows for an immersive, sonic experience of a space. The website and app – free, compatible and easy to use – allow any interested person to create and experience sounds assigned to specific locations.
How it works?
All you have to do is download the app and select one of the sound walks available in the catalog. Thanks to the geolocation service, the app will indicate all the walks nearby. It is possible to save them in the app’s memory and listen to them later without an internet connection, or to load a particular walk by scanning a special QR code.
Individual sounds are anchored in specific locations and visible on the map in the form of geometric shapes, as well as provided with a name and a brief description. Each sound is activated by the listener’s movements (thanks to the aforementioned geolocation service). Entering a designated area results in the activation of the recording assigned to it – within the selected sound walk. Depending on individual preference, it can resound directly from the phone’s speaker or from the headphones worn.
Allowing ourselves to be guided along the path laid out by the walk’s designers, we can explore the surrounding space in a completely non-obvious, multi-sensory way.
Due to the multisensory nature of the experience, it is advised to exercise special caution and awareness of the surroundings while using the Echoes application, especially near pedestrian crossings, busy streets, intersections, and construction areas.
SCAN THE QR CODE OR CLICK ON THE LINK TO LISTEN THE SOUNDWALK ON YOUR SMARTPHONE
The project is funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (KPO), supported by the European Union through the NextGenerationEU fund, the Thinking Through the Museum network, and the Association of the Jewish Historical Institute of Poland.
