Maciej Dakowicz Captures The Vibrancy Of Everyday Life

Moving across the world in pursuit of inspiration, Dakowicz’s street photography conjure up narratives that go below the surface of the image. His work presents the viewer with a unique, and often times humorous, representation of cities as diverse as Mumbai, Istanbul and Tokyo. Within these cities, Dakowicz juxtaposes capitalism and all that comes with it — from excess to tourism to commodification — with a sense of rebelliousness. He bawdily captures figures quite literally pissing in the face of commercialism, a man wearing a t-shirt with seductive lips on the front preparing chunks of meat, and an individual attempting to take a photo with a disposable camera facing the wrong way.“I am an outsider but I also interact. I am not a sneaky photographer.”

By combining a knack for capturing serendipitous moments and patience, Dakowicz is able to get shots that present the impossible: a man caught jumping midway between two walls, a young boy about to light his cigarette, a couple stuck in unusual yoga poses. But perhaps it is Dakowicz’s position as outsider and insider that allows him to so aptly catch the things that most of us miss with our naked eye. Speaking about the photography project that shot Dakowicz to fame, ‘Cardiff by night’, he comments “I am an outsider but I also interact. I am not a sneaky photographer,” and this is no more obvious than in his latest travel photographs.