They used to be here

The erasure of a nation's identity begins with its youngest generations. Forced displacement, abduction and re-education of children are common practices in colonial wars. History is cruel in its cyclical nature. As early as 2014, Russia began abducting Ukrainian children from the occupied territories and setting up education camps. Since the outbreak of the full-scale war, the number of children taken to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of their families has increased significantly and continues to grow: according to Kyiv, 19,546 children have been confirmed to have been forcibly displaced, while Moscow claims that the number reaches over 700,000. Information is being erased, lost and falsified, making it impossible to determine the exact number. How many children were taken away forever? Which of them will return? What will happen to them after the re-education camps, after growing up in Russian foster families? What will happen to their lives, their psyche, their sense of identity? This series is a visual reflection on the forced displacement of Ukrainian children in the context of war. I look at the issue of abduction through the prism of associations and images, and interpret it as the embodiment of one of the greatest fears of children. Children’s portraits were photographed in rescue centers of Save Ukraine NGO.