Knock Three Times

Knock Three Times explores the everyday rituals of superstition that continue to shape our behavior, even in a rational and modern world. The project questions how people navigate uncertainty and fear, and how they inherit traditions.

Knock Three Times explores the everyday rituals of superstition that continue to shape our behavior, even in a rational and modern world. Superstitions often appear in moments of fear and uncertainty — something that deeply resonated with me, especially as my home country, Ukraine, has been living through such a state since 2022. These gestures, both protective and fragile, reveal how cultural memory and magical thinking remain embedded in daily life.

The photographs in the project shift between two modes: on one hand, staged “instructional” images that highlight the surreality and almost absurd precision of superstitious actions; on the other, more atmospheric and poetic images that convey the magical aura surrounding these beliefs. Together, they transform superstition into a visual language that oscillates between documentation and imagination.

By revisiting these practices, Knock Three Times questions how people navigate uncertainty, how they inherit traditions, and how rituals offer both comfort and a sense of agency.