CloseUpRussia (Moscow empire, 2015 - ?)

This is probably the most important and (alas) probably the most pointless part of my job. After completing a photographic expedition on the waterways of Russia in 2014, it became clear that work on the documentation of Russian reality could be almost endless and could not fit into the framework of any projects. Therefore, in 2015 several like-minded photographers came up with the idea of creating a kind of long-term program to visualize Russian everyday life. So CloseUpRussia Documentary Photography Program appeared, based on the materials from the expedition "From White to Black Sea". In fact, here we are talking only about the process, not the result, and it reminds more of a miner's work in a coal mine than a diamond cutter. Therefore, in 2018, an experimental site was launched with so-called "webzines" featuring various episodes from everyday life that make up the fabric of Russian reality. Ideally, we are talking about a kind of visual encyclopedia.

In order to systematize the materials and make it easier to work with them, a public and a closed archive were launched. Photographers participating in the program visited more than 50 regions of Russia and this work has not been interrupted since 2015.

Now, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the goals and objectives of this work have been greatly blurred. It is extremely difficult to document a society that supports a criminal war, a society whose madness you cannot and do not want to join. But anyway, you are still part of this society and are also responsible for what is happening.