Michal Iwanowski
Michal Iwanowski (born 1977) is a Polish photographer and writer currently living in Cardiff, Wales.
Michal Iwanowski

Michal Iwanowski · website artist · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Name
- Michal Iwanowski
- Born
- 20 January 1977
- Birthplace
- Świebodzice
- Known for
- Photography
- Occupation
- photographer
- Education
- University of Wales and Newport
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Michal Iwanowski (born 1977) is a Polish photographer and writer currently living in Cardiff, Wales.
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wikidata · Q104778790 · wikipedia · Michal Iwanowski
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Michal Iwanowski • Born — 20 January 1977 • Birthplace — Świebodzice • Known for — Photography • Website — https: michaliwanowski.com
Life and work
Life and work
Iwanowski studied a MFA in Documentary Photography, University of Wales, Newport 2008.
Go home Polish
Go home Polish
In April 2018, Iwanowski travelled on foot from Wales to Poland triggered by the message "Go home Polish" written on a wall in the Welsh capital that he saw in 2008. The journey took 105 days to complete as Iwanowski travelled through England, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and the Czech Republic asking people he met about the concept of home. Iwanowski says “The only way for me to find out where home was for me was to walk from my home in Cardiff where I have lived for 17 years, to the home of my birth in Poland, and to ask people along the way: ‘Where is it? Where is home? What does it mean if I tell you to go home?’”
Clear of People
Clear of People
In 2013 Iwanowski walked to trace his grandfather's escape from a Russian gulag. In 1945 Anatol and Wiktor Iwanowski escaped from a prisoner war camp in Kaluga, Russia, and walked over to make it back to Poland. As fugitives, they walked only when it was dark and lived on what they could find along the journey. When they reached Wroclaw 90 days later, they were reunited with their families. Iwanowski used a rough map found in his great uncle's diary, and went back to document the route through Russia, Belarus, Lithuania and Poland. His work was compiled in a new book, "Clear of People".
Publications
• Clear of People. Berlin. Brave Books. 2017.. Edition of 700 copies.
Collections
Collections
• 2017: National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth • 2018: Museum Of Contemporary Art, Zagreb, Croatia • 2020: National Museum of Wales, Cardiff, Wales • 2020: Col·lecció d’Art Banc Sabadell, Spain
Documents and archives
Primary material
Documents and archives
reference work
- “Michal Iwanowski”, English Wikipedia, consulted as further reading
Reputable secondary · Wikipedia
authority record
- Wikidata, structured authority record Q104778790: Michal Iwanowski
General reference · Wikidata
Selected Awards
• 2008: Finalist in British Journal of Photography Project Assistance Award • 2009: Winner of Emerging Photographers 2009 by Magenta Foundation • 2009: Honourable Mention at Px3 Prix De Photographie, Paris. • 2016: Top 10 Books of 2016 for 'Post-war stories' at The New York Art Book Fair. • 2017: Shortlisted for Die Schonsten Deutschen Bocher - The Best German Book Design 2017 for 'Clear of People.' • 2018: Longlisted for Deutsche Borse Photography Prize 2018 for the book 'Clear of People. • 2020: Longlisted for Deutsche Borse Photography Prize 2020 for 'Go Home Polish' exhibition at Peckham24, London.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.BBC News. 'Go home Polish' graffiti prompts photographer's 1,200-mile walk.
- 2.Sienkiewicz, Krzysztof. MICHAŁ IWANOWSKI. CLEAR OF PEOPLE. Urbanautica.
- 3.Radio Wroclaw. Rozmowa Dnia: Zobaczył napis "Go home, Polish", wyszedł na "spacer". Przejdzie 2000 km.
- 4.O'Hagan, Sean. Interview 'I went loopy': the photographer who walked 1,200 miles from Wales to Poland. The Guardian.
- 5.Sańczuk, Anna. Gdzie jest dom? Projekt fotografa-wędrowca na Warsaw Gallery Weekend. Vogue.
- 6.Cuddy, Alice. Anti-migrant graffiti prompts photographer to walk 1,900km from Wales to Poland. Euronews.
- 7.Premiyak, Liza. Witness one photographer's epic walk from Wales to Poland. 1 June 2018. The Calvert Journal.
- 8.Kiedrzynek, Anna. "Pakuj graty!" - krzyczeli Brytyjczycy do Polaków. On spakował i wrócił piechotą do kraju. Newsweek.
- 9.The Guardian. I walked 2,000km to trace my grandfather's escape from a Russian gulag.
- 10.Thwaites, Millie. A photographer walked 1,360 miles from Russia to Poland retracing the steps of relatives who escaped from a prisoner of war camp. Wales Online.
- 11.BBC News. Photographer recreates grandfather's POW escape.
- 12.Mallonee, Laura. Retracing a 1,300-Mile Escape From a Soviet Gulag in WWII. Wired.
- 13.Bonaccorso, Nicole. Retracing a 1945 Escape from a Frozen Soviet Gulag (PHOTOS). The Weather Channel.
- 14.Wright, Sophie. Go Home, Polish. Lens Culture.
- 15.Brave Books. Clear of People.
- 16.Bohr, Marco. Clear of People. Photomonitor.
- 17.Magenta Foundation. Featured Artists.
- 18.The Irish Times. Clear of People - by Michal Iwanowski.
- 19.MacFarlane, Rachel. 10 Best PhotoBooks from the NY Art Book Fair. Format.
- 20.Premiyak, Liza. Photo books of 2017. The Calvert Journal.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessauthority record
General reference
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 18 August 2026.
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