The project coincided with the start of the bicentennial celebrations of photography in France—its birthplace.

The host institution was a university with a history spanning over two hundred years, founded in 1787. The project drew its inspiration from photographs of Orléans taken in 1843 by William Henry Fox Talbot, a photography pioneer. As part of the AMI (Archéologie des Média et Images) research programme, students from both universities combined historical imaging techniques with digital tools. "Zombie media" and "Frankenstein media" in this context referred to reviving obsolete technologies and forging new connections between devices. Methods included the use of the “scanopé”—a hybrid of a scanner and the “camera obscura” principle. The result was a series of original interpretations of city views. Students from the Lodz Film School also created their own story about Joan of Arc on Super 8 film. The project culminated in an exhibition and a public presentation of the works.

The programme was led by Laurent Baude, Hubert Humka, Maurice Huvelin, and Szymon Kobusiński. It opened with a lecture by Ambre Charpier. Experiments combining analogue and digital tools were coordinated by Julien Levesque, while Lisa Bonnet was responsible for production.

The Photography Department was represented by Patrycja Chęcińska, Natalia Dukin, Damian Iwanowski, and Eryk Siemianowicz.

The visit marked the next stage of a collaboration which has been developing for over two years—and since 2025, also within the framework of an Erasmus+ partnership. We have already held two joint "Urban Legends" summer schools, as well as guest lectures and student exhibitions. The Lodz Film School hosted an ESAD student on an exchange basis. We are currently preparing further projects with the France–Poland Season 2027 in mind.

Information about the workshops (in French) on the ESAD website: esadorleans.fr/workshop-international-archeologie-des-media-et-images-restitution-publique

photos: Damian Iwanowski