Taking Pictures of Beauty in Jarovnice

At first a rainy and cloudy Saturday magically turned into a sunny day. The date of July 3 will go down for the children of Jarovnice as the great day of photo shooting. When the photographer Šymon Kliman arrived to the Special Elementary School in Jarovnice, we was faced with embarrassment and blushed cheeks. However, after a while of mutual probing and mischievous smiles even the last fears and uncertainties about the upcoming photo shoot disappeared.

The children enrolled into the pilot project “Divé maky: The Chance for Romany Talents from Entire Slovakia” flocked in front of the school and eagerly watched Šymon to unpack his equipment. He decided to take a few shots on the school yard to give the children the chance to see how he works.

The initial camera shyness disappeared and it gave place to the immense desire to show the best in them. Šymon told them his intention at the very beginning: “I shoot pictures of Gypsies so that they look good. I want to show them differently as others do. So I want you to put on your best clothes and I will make beautiful pictures of you.” Even the promising dancer René Červeňák demonstrated his talent in front of the camera.

With the assistance of the local coordinator Rasťo Zubaj, the energetic photographer selected several children whom he decided to photograph in the natural environment, in beautiful clothes and with great enthusiasm. Firstly we were welcomed to the home of Paťo Giňa, the son of Florián Giňa who is one of the tutors living directly in the settlement. Florián knows all customs of the Romany people who live here and he guided our steps through the largest Romany settlement in Slovakia throughout the day.

When shooting at the Giňas who got all busy “reconstructing their home to a photo atelier” we went to the next house. Barborka Duždová was peeking shyly from behind the door; after a while she started to like the shooting so much that she showcased several models of ballroom dresses, and the fashion show ended with a beautiful wedding dress. “Barbora, where is your groom?”, the bystanders shouted with mischievous grins in their eyes.

Šymon liked the splendid stone yard of the Duždas so much that he made two more girls blush – Janka and Nikola.

At around the lunchtime the sun showed its strength so we thankfully accepted the invitation and the hospitality of Slávka's family who invited us to their little but cozy home. Drinking a nice cup of tea, Rasťo Zubaj told us they were still short of two educators in the school. “One who would be working with theater actors and one for the children with the literary and drama talent. You know, our goal is to enable as many children as possible to go to secondary schools.”

After a refreshing rest Rasťo took us to the second part of the Jarovnice settlement. We visited the beautiful girl Lucka Digová; Šymon liked how natural she was. After a while Vierka arrived, dressed in beautiful clothes, and made charming poses on the yard in front of the eager audience from the surrounding and as well as wider area.

Our last stop was a little house at the very end of the settlement surrounded by a beautiful meadow. We were eagerly expected by little models and “stričňas” (cousins) Soňa and Petra. We were later joined by the children coming back from the nearby creek which is a place they go to have fun on sunny days.

We said goodbye to another tutor Janko Zubaj and shortly after him even Rasťo and Florián came to say bye. The day spent in Jarovnice in the company of cheerful, spontaneous and skillful children was unforgettable.

From left to right: Ján Zubaj, Florián Giňa, Šymon Kliman, Rasťo Zubaj.