"Circle" is a visual exploration of civilian life in Ukraine, documented far from the front line. War affects everyday life quietly, but tangibly. People may simply be drinking tea — and at that very moment, their lives are falling apart.

What does war do to people? Kill them? Yes. Maim, wound, concuss? Yes. But that’s not all.

When we search for images of war, we almost always find the front. Explosions, smoke, blood, soldiers. But war is not only shelling. It’s much broader. Much quieter. It lives in tired gestures, in tense silences, in uncertain coming-of-age, in slow conversations about the weather. In real life, people don’t shoot, hang themselves, or confess love every minute. More often, they eat, drink, laze around, say foolish things. And that, too, is part of war. We just rarely notice it.


This project is about people living in the rear. Veterans returning home and going through rehabilitation. Teenagers growing up amid uncertainty. Villages where daily rituals continue.

"Circle" is a record of Ukrainian life into which war has quietly seeped. It’s a reflection on a state of being. On a daily reality where tragedy doesn’t scream. It exists.