Zofia Rydet: Sociological Record

Moving exhibition at the Photographers’ Gallery looking at the work of Polish photographer Zofia Rydet.

Rydet was an established artist when at the age of 67 in 1978 she began her project “Sociological Record” in which she photographed people in their homes. As she did more and more work she developed subcategories such as looking at women on their doorsteps, the role of photographs in the home and still-lives in windows.

The photos capture a moment in time and I found it moving to see what people had around them. I thought it was summed up by this quote from Rydet “Not only do people die, but with them their homes. Not only people vanish, but also everything that surrounded them. Only photography can stop time. Only photography has the power to overcome the spectre of death, and that is my unending struggle with death and transience."

Closed 22 February 2026


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