Oleksander was a volunteer with the Ukrainian forces defending the regions in the east of the country. In 2014, he survived the massacre of Ilovaisk, a battle in which many civilians and soldiers died. He was shot and went into a coma for half a year. Now he is retired and spends most of his time in his home village, reflecting on the events of the war.
Dmytrivka is a village in the south of Ukraine. It is here that I started and have been working on a project called "1,05 km2" that looks at life in rural areas in Ukraine.
Dmytrivka is located far from any urban areas. It is surrounded by large agricultural fields on all sides.
There are no supermarkets or shopping centres here. Maria is a shopkeeper at one of the three local grocery stores.
Serhii cannot walk because he is affected by a cerebral palsy. He spends most of the time at his desk, reading and writing poetry.
Serhii’s poetry is beginning to become known regionally. He is occasionally invited to recite at some events and a book of his work is being published soon. He enjoys reading for friends, neighbours and local schoolchildren.
Serhii’s father gives him an haircut at their home.
A kitchen interior.
Olena, near her house.
Nila Hryhorivna is resting on a bench outside her home after her daily routine. Every day, she works in her vegetable garden and tends to her flowers.
People gather to wait for the priest who oversees the Christian Orthodox communities in two of the region's villages.
This day, on January 19, he is arriving to perform the celebration of the Blessing of the Waters.
Winter time view to the backyards of some of the houses in one of Dmytrivka's residential streets.
A bedroom interior.
Maria is 92 years old. She has lived all her life in the same small village, and never moved away. Maria was a young girl when World War II started. She was captured two times and sent into forced labour, but both times she managed to escape and go into hiding. During her adult life she worked in the local collective farm and she says she led a happy life. She has a very big family with children and grandchildren living in different cities, but she never wanted to leave her village and abandon her home.
Kitchen interior in the local nursery school.
Nikita and Ivan play. They are supervised by Valentina Milova, the nursery school's headmistress.
Many of the school building's rooms are left unused and abandoned. There are not as many children nowadays as when the school was originally built.
On the other hand, the sports ground is always busy. Schoolchildren and the village’s teenagers alike come here to train and play.
Rita, one of the nursery school's pupils.
Detail of sunflower crops.
Olga is a civil administrator and a former head of the village council.
An old poster from the local library. It shows the photographs and names of the soldiers from Dmytrivka who died in World War II.
Vika arrives from a trip to a small nearby town.
Vika and Alyona are best friends and are hanging out together at all times.
An outside view of a family house.
Alyona.
Ivan and Stas swimming in the small lake on the edge of the village.