Ukrainian photographer George Ivanchenko gives a personal view on what it is like to be living in the country today.
Lviv, Feb 27, 2022
This photo was taken on the second or third day of the full-scale invasion, in Lviv in my apartment. My friend, his girlfriend and their cat are in the photo. They evacuated from Vinnytsia to Lviv. Why is it so valuable to me? Because this is the moment when the decision was made: Nastia and my girlfriend were going to the Czech Republic, that we would not see them for a long time.
Borodyanka, Kyiv region, April 2022
I went to Borodyanka the first day of de-occupation because I was born in a village near there. I remember its buildings, I remember where I got my hair cut for a Kinder egg, I remember the market and the main street. This building was hit by a Russian airstrike and at the moment the photo was taken, the State Emergency Service was still working to free people under the rubble in the basement.
Synkivka, Chernihiv region, April 2022
I was in a small village with old wooden houses. I looked into a yard and I happened to see this. It is a shell, probably from a hurricane or tornado missile. This is situated only 600 meters from where the three borders of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia meet. There is a monument called the three sisters and, symbolically, from that place they were shelling the Chernihiv region.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
A canal divides Chasiv Yar and there's one such district across the canal in the direction of Bakhmut - the side of hell - it's quite a dangerous area. In one apartment block there is a tank next to a crater from a missile, in which a soldier is probably buried. There is no more information, but it's an incredibly sad and incredibly horrible picture and situation.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
Serhiy, age 17, is on the right, and the owner of a beautiful red Lada, 27-year-old Dmytro, is on the left. They are washing their car while a house burns, caused by phosphorus bombs. I like this situation because they are doing something routine. Despite the fact that there is a war and they are four kilometers from the front line, they are so easygoing, carefree, washing their car.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
The road to Bakhmut goes through Chasiv Yar. This is a local woman, her name is Zinaida. She is 72 years old. She is Orthodox and she took us to her apartment. The whole room is covered with paper icons and to her left, there is an altar with a candelabrum where she prays. She told me that her day usually starts at 3 am with a 3-hour prayer.
Bakhmut, Donetsk region, June 2023
This is a girl named Milana, she is about 11 years old. We became good friends at that moment. We played monopoly, had tea, talked. It was so warm, so cozy, so nice. I don't think I've ever felt like that in my family home, as I did in that basement in Bakhmut. As far as I know, Milanka is not evacuated, although many people with their children fled the building after the missile hit it.
Mykolaiv city, June 2022
It's a hot summer in Mykolaiv which is a near-frontline city. I thought it would be safe there. But every morning from 5-5:40 am the city was shelled with five to twelve cruise or ballistic missiles. This photo shows workers returning home because a missile hit an oil warehouse. The warehouse was burning for two or three days and when it was put out, it started to burn again.
Kherson, November 2022
This is during the liberation of the Kherson region. This region is important to me because I lived there for five years. I captured the joy and delight after the Russian occupiers had finally left the city. Although now I look at it with a different perspective in the sense that the city suffers so much every day from shelling and many people are killed. But that moment was a moment of victory.
Lviv, Feb 27, 2022
This photo was taken on the second or third day of the full-scale invasion, in Lviv in my apartment. My friend, his girlfriend and their cat are in the photo. They evacuated from Vinnytsia to Lviv. Why is it so valuable to me? Because this is the moment when the decision was made: Nastia and my girlfriend were going to the Czech Republic, that we would not see them for a long time.
Borodyanka, Kyiv region, April 2022
I went to Borodyanka the first day of de-occupation because I was born in a village near there. I remember its buildings, I remember where I got my hair cut for a Kinder egg, I remember the market and the main street. This building was hit by a Russian airstrike and at the moment the photo was taken, the State Emergency Service was still working to free people under the rubble in the basement.
Synkivka, Chernihiv region, April 2022
I was in a small village with old wooden houses. I looked into a yard and I happened to see this. It is a shell, probably from a hurricane or tornado missile. This is situated only 600 meters from where the three borders of Belarus, Ukraine and Russia meet. There is a monument called the three sisters and, symbolically, from that place they were shelling the Chernihiv region.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
A canal divides Chasiv Yar and there's one such district across the canal in the direction of Bakhmut - the side of hell - it's quite a dangerous area. In one apartment block there is a tank next to a crater from a missile, in which a soldier is probably buried. There is no more information, but it's an incredibly sad and incredibly horrible picture and situation.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
Serhiy, age 17, is on the right, and the owner of a beautiful red Lada, 27-year-old Dmytro, is on the left. They are washing their car while a house burns, caused by phosphorus bombs. I like this situation because they are doing something routine. Despite the fact that there is a war and they are four kilometers from the front line, they are so easygoing, carefree, washing their car.
Chasiv Yar, Donetsk region, April 2023
The road to Bakhmut goes through Chasiv Yar. This is a local woman, her name is Zinaida. She is 72 years old. She is Orthodox and she took us to her apartment. The whole room is covered with paper icons and to her left, there is an altar with a candelabrum where she prays. She told me that her day usually starts at 3 am with a 3-hour prayer.
Bakhmut, Donetsk region, June 2023
This is a girl named Milana, she is about 11 years old. We became good friends at that moment. We played monopoly, had tea, talked. It was so warm, so cozy, so nice. I don't think I've ever felt like that in my family home, as I did in that basement in Bakhmut. As far as I know, Milanka is not evacuated, although many people with their children fled the building after the missile hit it.
Mykolaiv city, June 2022
It's a hot summer in Mykolaiv which is a near-frontline city. I thought it would be safe there. But every morning from 5-5:40 am the city was shelled with five to twelve cruise or ballistic missiles. This photo shows workers returning home because a missile hit an oil warehouse. The warehouse was burning for two or three days and when it was put out, it started to burn again.
Kherson, November 2022
This is during the liberation of the Kherson region. This region is important to me because I lived there for five years. I captured the joy and delight after the Russian occupiers had finally left the city. Although now I look at it with a different perspective in the sense that the city suffers so much every day from shelling and many people are killed. But that moment was a moment of victory.