The Porous Border

This series is a continuation of my work around my homeland of Ukraine. I traveled throughout Kyiv and nearby territories of early occupation to document how the war has affected the land and its people in effort to understand the psychic, physical toll.

When does history cease being an abstracted memory and become a habitable reality? Where does a border end and a nation begin?

I ask these questions as a Ukrainian immigrant and American citizen trying to make sense of the war in Ukraine and nationhood, how people experience it and the lengths they’re willing to go to preserve it. I traveled throughout Kyiv and territories of early occupation to document how the war has affected average citizens. I photographed Ukrainians who've remained in their homes even in times of Russian occupation, who’ve lost loved ones and those who’ve joined military resistance groups.

Though stemming from personal sentiment, the images are not meant to serve as a condemnation of or defense of any one cultural group but rather to highlight the toll that a military conflict has on the psyche of a people.