Artist statement

*"To Do List - To father a son, to build a house, to plant a tree"* is a photographic project by Jakub Stanek, offering a personal reflection on modern fatherhood and the redefinition of masculinity.

As a father to a 10-year-old boy, in whose life he has played a central role, Stanek seeks to understand the stereotypes surrounding gender roles and what has led to the current imbalance in the

parenting system. This imbalance, as perceived by the artist during a lengthy custody battle for his son, marginalized him as a father who both desired and was fully capable of playing an equal role in raising his child. The project focuses on the crisis of masculinity, which Stanek sees not as a problem but as an opportunity for change. In this crisis, he identifies a chance to deconstruct traditional male and female roles and to build a new, more balanced vision of masculinity. His photographs explore the emotions, challenges, and beauty of parenthood, transcending societal expectations of men as strong and unwavering providers.

The images in the project depict both intimate moments from Stanek's life with his son and symbolic representations of the weight of stereotypes that have defined fatherhood for decades. Everyday objects, fragments of a child's world, and family scenes become visual metaphors for the

tension between tradition and Stanek's aspirations for greater involvement and equality.The *"To Do List"* project also aims to spark a conversation about the marginalization of fathers in legal and social systems that often favor mothers as default primary caregivers. Through his work, Jakub Stanek demonstrates that fatherhood is far more than a checklist of tasks-fathering a son, building a house, and planting a tree, which for generations have been instilled in men as the essence of their role. Fatherhood is time, love, commitment, and the ability to build deep relationships with children.