This project tells the stories of Belarusian military volunteers who are fighting in Ukraine. I record their personal experiences and emotional states, as well as social and family networks that are very vulnerable during war.

Many Belarusian volunteers have joined the fight in Ukraine, helping to defend it from Russian attacks. For some, Ukraine has become a home and a family, and they protect it. Some even see this as a chance to return to their loved ones in Belarus sooner if Ukraine succeeds, but it’s a path for which many pay with their lives and health.

The photographs show their journey: from their departure to Ukraine and their war experience to the problems they face upon returning from a war to nowhere and the irreparable losses of loved ones who did not return from the war.

Through these personal stories, I create a portrait of the peculiar “borderline” state in which these people operate, a state in which the line between life and death, duty and sacrifice is blurred.

This project explores people's motivations and emotions, from the feeling of having to go to war in Ukraine, to the fear and insecurity, the struggle and loss they endure, and the impact of conflict on personal connections. Many fighters leave families and loved ones behind to fight in Ukraine, and the feeling of having to take part in the war often conflicts with the desire to be close to family.

I am also interested in exploring how the relationships change, so the project is aimed not only at the volunteers themselves but also at the people close to them (parents, wives, families) and the impact that war has on their lives and connections. An interesting parallel is that the protests in Belarus in 2020 were mostly peaceful, and it was women who played a large role in them.

I work and research the processes of overcoming difficulties in adapting to normal life after returning from war due to injuries and other reasons, as well as the problem of PTSD among former war veterans.

Exploring the topic of Belarusian volunteer fighters allows me to continue my work on a long-term project about the parallel realities of Belarusians inside and outside their homeland.

I ask myself, as a Belarusian, what does it mean to be Belarusian today? What are the metaphorical and physical borders, in the past and today? I ask what it should be, how we can resist, and where we should be to be free.