“Obscura” – one of three magazines devoted to photography in the 1980s in Poland – was one of the more exceptional side-effects of the Polish People’s Republic. The magazine was conceived as a replacement for “Informational Materials” [Materialy informacyjne] a bulletin published by the Federation of the Association of Amateur Photographers in Poland [Federacja Amatorskich Stowarzyszen Fotograficznych]. The magazine received state support but at the same time it was not present in the official circuit as it was an internal publication of an organization. Throughout the years of its existence it featured pioneering translations of texts which are still considered obligatory not only in relation to the field of photography. The names of the authors who appeared in the index are self-explanatory. “Obsura’s” editor-in-chief was Jerzy Busza, who wasalso the author of the initiative, while the editorial staff included Lech Lechowicz, Sławomir Magala, Adam Sobota, Grzegorz Musiał. From issue 10 the team was joined by Marceli Bacciarelli, Jan M. Jackowski, and Marta Lesniakowska. The post of graphic director was occupied by Zbigniew Dubiel (up till the issue 10) and Janina Wojtan (from issue 11 onwards). Each issue had 40 pages and was reproduced using a printer-duplicator, with 10 issues appearing each year. The circulation amounted to 500 copies, and the format 14,5 x 20,5 centimeters. The magazine was not illustrated. According to Busza’s account the title was proposed by the graphic artist Andrzej Krajewski, whose task was to design the covers, an alternative idea for a name was “Pakamera”. The main aim of the authors was to present the most significant theoretical texts and historical studies (both Polish and foreign) which would offer an insight into photography in the context of various methodologies. >>> magazine content