“The Forbidden Family Album” is a direct response to the sanitized history of domestic photography.
For decades, everyday photography has been conditioned to purge family albums of sorrow, illness, and death—an act of deliberate omission that continues today through the curated lifestyles presented on social media.
This project challenges that censorship by documenting what is traditionally considered forbidden: the reality of my father’s terminal illness. Initially, I hesitated and felt ashamed to ask my father if I could photograph him or share those images publicly. Influenced by the unspoken rules of what “should” be photographed, I unconsciously followed them. However, I soon realized the absolute necessity of documenting this process.
Crucially, my father, himself a painter and artist, understood the power of the image. He not only allowed but encouraged me to photograph him, accepting his illness and inevitable death as an integral part of life. During this period, I was living in Malta and rarely able to visit him in Poland. Photographing him became an essential part of my practice of rigorously documenting my own life.
My aim was to create snapshots that could have belonged in a family album, reflecting the visual language of domestic, everyday photography shaped by Kodak culture and the development of mass media. These raw, unstaged images serve as undeniable evidence of what was actually happening. By capturing them, I reclaim the “real family album” and reject a culture built upon carefully constructed, untruthful moments. In memory of Piotr Staszczyk.
About Kacper Staszczyk
Kacper is a Polish documentary and street photographer currently completing a Master’s degree in Photography. His work focuses on raw, unposed moments drawn from everyday life, exploring the relationship between people, memory, and public space. His photographs have received international recognition, including an Honorable Mention at the IPA 2025. [Official Website]
