Ania and Russ

Art galleries are such wonderful places don’t you think? So many stories to be told and so much beauty on the walls. Today’s couple Ania and Russ celebrated their engagement with a set of photographs together at Carriageworks and the photos  are a mix of the beautiful raw, distressed walls and stunning art (and of course, plenty of Ania and Russ’ love). They come to us today from photographer Marzena Wasilewska.

Ania notes “We had our engagement session about 6 months before the wedding, we thought we would be a great memento from our engagement period, it was important for us do to have it done it the place which we spent lots of time in and was special for us. The session took place in Newtown, Sydney where we lived most of the time, it?s a very creative and inspiring suburb with lots of street art, beautiful terraced houses, second hand bookshops and cosy cafes. The first set of the photos was taken in a modern art space called Carriageworks where Russell and I like to visit every Saturday. It was a beautiful afternoon in August, quite blistery, which we didn’t mind at all! Together with our photographer, Marzena we walked down the streets of Newtown and had lots of fun wandering to all of our favourite spots in the suburb.”

“Russell and I met 6 years ago in London. I was doing a job internship and Russ was getting some international experience as a graphic designer and saving up for his travels. We both ended up in North London in a short-term backpackers accommodation where we would be having breakfast on the stairs in morning or share a glass of Baileys in the evening. Russ is originally from Australia, I am Polish. After my internship had finished and I left London, Russ decided to visit me in Poland where we spent 3 great days together before he got on a plane and flew away to live in New Zealand. We didn’t see each other for 1.5 years during which time we kept in touch by email, phone, sending each other little presents. In 2007 I decided to come to Sydney, so did Russ and we met up at the airport on the same day. A few weeks later we decided to move in together for the time of my stay in Sydney. ”

“The holiday finished eventually and sadly it was time for me to go back to university in Poland. Not wanting to get separated Russ decided to take up the challenge and come to live there with me in Poland! It was a great experience for both of us and also a chance for Russ to get to know my family, culture and the language. After finishing my degree we went on a few weeks holiday in Eastern Europe. One day we went of a bike tour in Slovenia, it was a lovely autumn afternoon. We were cycling through wineries and eventually decided to stop on top of a hill for a picnic. In one moment Russ asked completely unexpectedly? How would you say in Polish: ?will you marry me?? A couple of months later we moved to Australia as an engaged couple. This is where we had our wedding 1.5 years later.”