Candid photographs taken in a Hungarian children's home from Monika Merva

It was in 2000 that photographer Monika Merva first had the idea for her project, The City of Children. “I moved to Budapest… [and] while brainstorming the subject matter with one of my cousins, she mentioned this place referred to as ‘Children City’. I was immediately interested,” Monika explains. A government housing facility for children in need of a safe place, Children City was not known for "letting outsiders in and so the photographer’s quest of gaining access began.

After a few “good words” with the director of the children’s home and several correspondences, Monika was finally allowed to visit in 2002. “My first visit was just for five days. I returned the following year with their portraits. I made that trip another seven times.” This effort and time invested in the project is reflected throughout the series. Thoughtfully composed and compassionate, Monika avoids exploiting the trust of these children and teenagers by capturing fragments of their stories in each image.

The series is beautifully candid and perfectly captures the friendships and bonds the children have built between each other. “All I wanted to do was spend time with them and reflect back to them how wonderful, courageous and beautiful they all were. I believed in what the home was trying to do with these children and wanted others to see what is possible,” Monika says.

Gaining the trust of the children before taking photographs was important to Monika; “I spent a lot of time just talking with them in Hungarian, sharing my life while listening to their stories… I treated them as family and I believe they felt I had their best intentions in mind.” This is reflected through the genuine moments she’s captured; the laughter, the sadness, the simple act of hanging out, it feels natural. “I relied heavily on my ability to just ‘be with them’ to create these images,” Monika explains. “This project is about lives and the everyday, so that’s where the photographs had to take place… I wouldn’t want to stage images. It would change the quality and intent of the work.”

As Monika points out, “we’ve all been teenagers feeling awkward, ugly, beautiful, lost, angry, bored and looking for acceptance,” but what makes Monika’s photographs so poignant is the fact their growing-up has to take place in an environment many of them didn’t choose. Despite the uneasiness and melancholy to some images, Monika still manages to capture glimmers of light and happiness in the series.