Historia rodziny Ettingerów, właścicieli zakładów fotograficznych „Erna” i „Janina” w Krakowie oraz w Rabce w latach 1917–1943

Abstract

HISTORY OF THE ETTINGER FAMILY, OWNERS OF THE PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDIOS “ERNA” AND “JANINA” IN KRAKÓW AND RABKA BETWEEN 1917 AND 1943

Between 1917 and 1919, the Ettinger family came to Kraków; they were a married couple, Dawid and Ernestyna, and their sons Samuel and Izydor followed their professional footsteps. The Ettingers were initially itinerant photographers and were also active in Rabka, where they opened one of the first four photographic studios open all year around, known since 1924 as Foto Centrala “Janina”. After their arrival in Kraków, they opened the “Erna” atelier in 1918 and the “Janina” Artistic Photography Studio in 1927, which was very popular with the people of Kraków. A prominent figure in the family was Ernestyna Ettinger, one of only a few women independently practising the profession of photographer in the interwar Kraków. The article also mentions Filip and Berta Ettinger, Dawid’s brother and Ernestyna’s sister photographers active in Rabka and running the Foto Centrala “Janina” atelier there. Due to the scale of their business, the Ettinger family stood out in the photographic community. From humble beginnings, their shop grew to become a respected atelier, and Rabka’s studios actually dominated outdoor photography in the local spa. The article discusses not only the history of the family and the studios they ran in Kraków and Rabka, but also the wartime and post-war history of those family members who survived the Holocaust. The text restores the memory of this important and respected family of Kraków and Rabka photographers, whose professional activity was brutally interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War and later completely forgotten.