He led Poles through the “apocalypse”. He recorded key events in history through his lens

Chris Niedenthal is one of the most outstanding Polish photographers, whose famous photo showing troops against the background of the Moscow Cinema in the Palace of Culture and Science is considered a symbol of martial law. But pigeonholing him only with this photo would be unfair to him, because he has many more unique moments immortalized with the camera. You will find more interesting texts on the home page.

Citizen of Warsaw. A 13-year-old who fell in love with photography

Christopher Jan Niedenthal was born in 1950 in London, but Warsaw has been his home for 50 years (since 1973). He comes from a family of Polish immigrants who emigrated from Vilnius after the war. When he first came to Poland at the age of 13, he has remained here to this day, and was introduced to the complex fate of our statehood by his first camera, a Kodak Starmite. However, he developed his passion where he came from – in London at the London College of Printing. After graduation, it was time to work for “Newsweek” and it was for this editorial office that he photographed the first visit of Pope John Paul II to Poland in 1979. Photo of the head of the church Catholic church with carnations in his hand and a little girl next to him appeared on the cover of the magazine.

A short history of a great photo. Huge emotional charge

However, it was another photo that made him extremely famous to this day, and it is associated with the introduction of martial law in Poland. “Apocalypse Now” shows an armored personnel carrier accompanied by soldiers against the background of the Moscow Cinema. The title is symbolic, but also appropriate, because it is set against the background of a billboard advertising Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpiece. As Niedenthal’s interlocutor and companion admitted to PAP, “he always cleverly managed to protect himself from dangerous and difficult situations. He really liked taking photos with long lenses, thanks to which he could stand much further away, that’s how “Apocalypse Now” was created.” She added at the end that “Chris photo “he did it from the other side of the street, from the staircase.”

How did Niedenthal cope under increased censorship scrutiny? The artist sent films by airmail, which was made easier by his work in weekly magazines. Tourists received the slides, and only after some time did he find out what photos had been published – he delivered undeveloped materials.

A witness of great changes. Poland, but also the whole world

Another famous photo by Niedenthal shows the figure of the Hungarian First Secretary General Janos Kadar. Thanks to this photo, he received the Grand Press Photo award in 1986 and appeared on the cover of the famous “Time”. Although he moved to Austria in 1987, the wind of change and love for Poland still attracted him.

In 1989, he managed to visit the First Secretary of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, to prepare materials regarding reforms in the country and to document the riots in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. However, the period of the most intense work took place during the events taking place in Poland. He photographed both the most important events behind the political scenes (the “Round Table” debates) and ordinary citizens, whose emotions he reflected in the photos one hundred percent.

The artist’s private life.

Chris Niedenthal settled permanently in Poland in 1995, setting up an advertising studio, and received Polish citizenship three years later. Together with his wife Karolina, they have a son, Filip, who is the editor-in-chief of “Esquire”. The photographer also received the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta in 2013 and to this day he shares his experiences from 1989 during author meetings, which “was above all a time of great hope. Hope, which we miss so much today.” He still has no shortage of passion, because he still immortalizes the most important events in the country.