Stories

My Photo scholarship 2010 entry

Ukraine | Sunday, October 17, 2010 | 5 photos

These photos were taken during my ten-day stay in Ukraine mountain villages. I was lucky to meet with the openness of the local people. They shared their home and their everyday life with me.

As far as equipment is concerned, these pictures were taken mostly with Minox and processed traditionally. I still find something special about the B&W process, but I'm not refusing the digital world. It is only important to have the right tools for the job.

I was surprised too see in a country in Europe, not too far from my big city home, people so very poor but happy and warm. In the country regions most people are dependent on nature and must grow most of their food and so have kept a deep connection to the land. The Ukrainians actually resemble their land, they are ordinary on the surface and may be even a bit rough (often depending on how much vodka they had that day) but under this surface is something pure and beautiful. They are also highly spiritual, the traditional religion still plays an enormously important role. Of course there are many problems and idealizing living in a poor country is naive. Nevertheless, even though hard, life seemed to be paradoxically less complicated there.

I am grateful for such experiences, especially when I am admitted to see under the surface of things, whether it is the way of people live, a mood of a landscape, genius loci of a place. I have the patience to wait for a shot and for a story to happen. Hopefully I can see and express in pictures something deeper than can be put into words, which I believe is the great strength of photography. I cannot tell how well I succeeded in Ukraine but I would be excited to explore the spirit of Bhutan and share it with others through the lens.