Marysya Myanovska is a new member of the UAPF, documentary and conceptual photographer. She went from fashion photography to documentary projects highlighting changes in Ukrainian society. She now explores the challenges women in the military face, highlighting their struggle for the right to fight while participating in the defense of their country. Today, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers publishes a conversation with Marisea and her photos.
— Why documentary photos? Who do you define yourself by?
— I define myself as a documentary concept photographer. In the photo, I am probably 10 years old. But I began to shoot documentary photography in 2019. It was 2018 or 2019 when I decided to go to study at the Marushchenko School of Modern Photography. I was having a creative crisis and I was looking for a higher meaning in photography. Before that, I worked in fashion photography, but I couldn't find any other meaning for myself other than money and commercial success. I was exhausted and I felt the need for something greater, for a higher purpose.
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I was advised to contact Viktor Marushchenko. This decision became fundamental in my life and completely changed its direction, significantly affecting the further development of my destiny. I went to two courses: “History of Photography” and “Creation of a Photo Project”, led by Valery Miloserdov. It was there that I began to work on my own project about my older brother, who died at that time, and about the youth of the 90s, that is, my brother's contemporaries, as well as modern youth living in Troyeshchyna.
It was the culmination when I found an approach that allows me to tell my own story not through myself, but through the world and the events that take place around me. This is how my first project began, which originated in Marushchenko's school, and later turned into my first long-term project. It has received awards, has been published and exhibited in many places. The project is called “Oh where are you, brother.”
— How did your photos complement the book of the writer Sergei Zhadan?
— The first photos for “Oh Where Are You, Brother” were taken even before this project took shape and got into the book. Sergey Zhadan and I have been working on the book “The Psalm of Aviation” for a long time. I shot for this collection, which combines poetic and visual stories. It was this series about teenagers from Troyeshchyna that became the visual start for the project. Initially, the photos were black and white, but when I started developing it as a full-fledged project, they had already become colored.
— How and when did you start documenting the war?
— “My success with the first project has helped me a lot. I realized that you can live not only from commercial, but also documentary photography. Previously, I did not even imagine that you can only do documentary photography and live like that. That was a big plus, because I didn't aspire to, and still do not aspire to do reportorial photography — I'm not a reporter. It's not criticism, it's just not my approach. I also do not take commission assignments from publications for shooting. Usually if something is published, it is already my own material that someone wanted to publish.
So I began to actively promote my work, look for opportunities to receive scholarships and grants. I also went to study in Düsseldorf, where I received a scholarship for photojournalists. This was in 2022, and I was very lucky that three of my teachers were war photographers.
In May 2022, I returned to Kiev, then the Russians had just moved away from the city, but there were still many traces of invasion around. I continued to shoot my Troyeshchyna district and the same young people whom I photographed before. We came together, and I realized that the project about my brother and young people was transformed into the story of a whole generation. The war became a new focus for this project and added new development.
Thus, I did not choose the theme of war — war entered my life and profession. And it was then that I began to capture these changes that the war brought to the lives of young people and my neighborhood.
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— What is your project “How deep the ball lies” about?
— During the year I worked on a project called “How Deep the Ball Lies”. I received a grant for a project about teenagers in Chernihiv who stayed in the city during the occupation of the region. They experienced destruction when their schools were destroyed by rockets. In that group, there were 6—7 adolescents who were combined into one new class so that they could complete their studies. My task was to document their story — how they experienced it. In addition, I held a photography workshop for them.
It was an extremely interesting experience, because I was struck by how deeply children feel and express inner experiences through the outside world. They had never studied the history of art or the work of other photographers, but their emotions were so strong that they reflected them perfectly in their photographs.
Subsequently, this project was exhibited in London, and I returned to Chernihiv and continued to film their lives and changes in the city.
— Why did you take up the project about women servicemen?
— In November 2023, I went to the combat zone for the first time with a volunteer mission. There I began to shoot a little of my friend, who works as a combat medic in the Kharkiv direction. I stayed in it for the night and took a little film. This material lay for a long time, and I did not know whether it was worth continuing or not.
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In May of this year, I applied for a grant from the Projector Foundation with a project about servicewomen performing combat missions. And when I won this grant, I realized that this topic was worth exploring. So I'm continuing to work on the project now.
In my opinion, there is a conflict between reality and social attitudes. The problem with mobilization in the country is serious, and it is not solved with sufficient quality — there are not enough people, and the problem is only growing. Women could be mobilized, and many of them are willing to volunteer, but the system creates obstacles for them. Society has a hard time accepting the fact that women can fight too. Those who manage to mobilize are forced to fight not only with the enemy, but also for their place in the team, the right to perform combat tasks and receive proper training.
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Women volunteers, like any volunteer, are highly motivated, even more so than contract military, because they consciously choose this path, understanding all the difficulties. However, this valuable resource remains undervalued. There is talk about the mobilization of men from the age of 18, and the issue of mobilizing women is ignored, although it would be a logical step. Not everyone should go to the forefront, but it is worth preparing citizens who can defend themselves and be useful units if necessary.
As I work on the project, I am constantly faced with prejudices. Military men often underestimate women in combat positions. Even when a woman occupies an important position, for example, an assault rifle or an artillery commander, this is perceived with distrust. Recently I was looking for a MI-8 pilot girl, and at first I was told by the Air Force command that there were none. But then they searched and found. This is the state of affairs for us. Women must fight for the right to fight.
What is the name of this project?
There is no final name for the project yet. It used to be formal, but it doesn't fit, so I don't voice it. I'm still searching. I always have this: my curator, Valery Miloserdov, always emphasizes that you need to first invent a name, describe the project, and then start shooting. But I always do the opposite. The name appears in the process of work, when enough information has already been collected, interesting heroes have been found. Then the composition and the idea of the project itself can change. Please forgive me Valery.
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The project I am working on, although it was formed as a collection of individual girls' stories, has been transformed into a project that uses stories as a tool to highlight important social processes. I gradually move away from purely personal moments and use individual experiences to show changes that have already occurred, but which society has not yet understood or experienced. Each story of the girls in this project is a reflection of ongoing processes in society and serves as a means to raise important issues.
Marysya Myanovska — conceptual photographer, volunteer and marketer of the women's veteran movement VETERANKA. She graduated from the Kyiv National Trade and Economic University and the Viktor Marushchenko School of Contemporary Photography, the NOOR photojournalism course in Düsseldorf. She was born and lives in Kyiv, and in recent years she has lived between Poland and Ukraine, but since 2023 she has returned to Ukraine. Marisya explores the change of generations through her photo projects. Her first project tells about her brother Valery, who died, and teenagers from Troyeshchyna. Currently, it focuses on images of young people fighting for Ukraine. Marisa's Instagram.
The material was worked on:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Vera Labych
Bildeditor: Vyacheslav Ratynskyi
Literary Editor: Julia Foutei
Site Manager: Vladislav Kuhar
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Marysya Myanovska is a new member of the UAPF, documentary and conceptual photographer. She went from fashion photography to documentary projects highlighting changes in Ukrainian society. She now explores the challenges women in the military face, highlighting their struggle for the right to fight while participating in the defense of their country. Today, the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers publishes a conversation with Marisea and her photos.
— Why documentary photos? Who do you define yourself by?
— I define myself as a documentary concept photographer. In the photo, I am probably 10 years old. But I began to shoot documentary photography in 2019. It was 2018 or 2019 when I decided to go to study at the Marushchenko School of Modern Photography. I was having a creative crisis and I was looking for a higher meaning in photography. Before that, I worked in fashion photography, but I couldn't find any other meaning for myself other than money and commercial success. I was exhausted and I felt the need for something greater, for a higher purpose.
I was advised to contact Viktor Marushchenko. This decision became fundamental in my life and completely changed its direction, significantly affecting the further development of my destiny. I went to two courses: “History of Photography” and “Creation of a Photo Project”, led by Valery Miloserdov. It was there that I began to work on my own project about my older brother, who died at that time, and about the youth of the 90s, that is, my brother's contemporaries, as well as modern youth living in Troyeshchyna.
It was the culmination when I found an approach that allows me to tell my own story not through myself, but through the world and the events that take place around me. This is how my first project began, which originated in Marushchenko's school, and later turned into my first long-term project. It has received awards, has been published and exhibited in many places. The project is called “Oh where are you, brother.”
— How did your photos complement the book of the writer Sergei Zhadan?
— The first photos for “Oh Where Are You, Brother” were taken even before this project took shape and got into the book. Sergey Zhadan and I have been working on the book “The Psalm of Aviation” for a long time. I shot for this collection, which combines poetic and visual stories. It was this series about teenagers from Troyeshchyna that became the visual start for the project. Initially, the photos were black and white, but when I started developing it as a full-fledged project, they had already become colored.
— How and when did you start documenting the war?
— “My success with the first project has helped me a lot. I realized that you can live not only from commercial, but also documentary photography. Previously, I did not even imagine that you can only do documentary photography and live like that. That was a big plus, because I didn't aspire to, and still do not aspire to do reportorial photography — I'm not a reporter. It's not criticism, it's just not my approach. I also do not take commission assignments from publications for shooting. Usually if something is published, it is already my own material that someone wanted to publish.
So I began to actively promote my work, look for opportunities to receive scholarships and grants. I also went to study in Düsseldorf, where I received a scholarship for photojournalists. This was in 2022, and I was very lucky that three of my teachers were war photographers.
In May 2022, I returned to Kiev, then the Russians had just moved away from the city, but there were still many traces of invasion around. I continued to shoot my Troyeshchyna district and the same young people whom I photographed before. We came together, and I realized that the project about my brother and young people was transformed into the story of a whole generation. The war became a new focus for this project and added new development.
Thus, I did not choose the theme of war — war entered my life and profession. And it was then that I began to capture these changes that the war brought to the lives of young people and my neighborhood.
— What is your project “How deep the ball lies” about?
— During the year I worked on a project called “How Deep the Ball Lies”. I received a grant for a project about teenagers in Chernihiv who stayed in the city during the occupation of the region. They experienced destruction when their schools were destroyed by rockets. In that group, there were 6—7 adolescents who were combined into one new class so that they could complete their studies. My task was to document their story — how they experienced it. In addition, I held a photography workshop for them.
It was an extremely interesting experience, because I was struck by how deeply children feel and express inner experiences through the outside world. They had never studied the history of art or the work of other photographers, but their emotions were so strong that they reflected them perfectly in their photographs.
Subsequently, this project was exhibited in London, and I returned to Chernihiv and continued to film their lives and changes in the city.
— Why did you take up the project about women servicemen?
— In November 2023, I went to the combat zone for the first time with a volunteer mission. There I began to shoot a little of my friend, who works as a combat medic in the Kharkiv direction. I stayed in it for the night and took a little film. This material lay for a long time, and I did not know whether it was worth continuing or not.
In May of this year, I applied for a grant from the Projector Foundation with a project about servicewomen performing combat missions. And when I won this grant, I realized that this topic was worth exploring. So I'm continuing to work on the project now.
In my opinion, there is a conflict between reality and social attitudes. The problem with mobilization in the country is serious, and it is not solved with sufficient quality — there are not enough people, and the problem is only growing. Women could be mobilized, and many of them are willing to volunteer, but the system creates obstacles for them. Society has a hard time accepting the fact that women can fight too. Those who manage to mobilize are forced to fight not only with the enemy, but also for their place in the team, the right to perform combat tasks and receive proper training.
Women volunteers, like any volunteer, are highly motivated, even more so than contract military, because they consciously choose this path, understanding all the difficulties. However, this valuable resource remains undervalued. There is talk about the mobilization of men from the age of 18, and the issue of mobilizing women is ignored, although it would be a logical step. Not everyone should go to the forefront, but it is worth preparing citizens who can defend themselves and be useful units if necessary.
As I work on the project, I am constantly faced with prejudices. Military men often underestimate women in combat positions. Even when a woman occupies an important position, for example, an assault rifle or an artillery commander, this is perceived with distrust. Recently I was looking for a MI-8 pilot girl, and at first I was told by the Air Force command that there were none. But then they searched and found. This is the state of affairs for us. Women must fight for the right to fight.
What is the name of this project?
There is no final name for the project yet. It used to be formal, but it doesn't fit, so I don't voice it. I'm still searching. I always have this: my curator, Valery Miloserdov, always emphasizes that you need to first invent a name, describe the project, and then start shooting. But I always do the opposite. The name appears in the process of work, when enough information has already been collected, interesting heroes have been found. Then the composition and the idea of the project itself can change. Please forgive me Valery.
The project I am working on, although it was formed as a collection of individual girls' stories, has been transformed into a project that uses stories as a tool to highlight important social processes. I gradually move away from purely personal moments and use individual experiences to show changes that have already occurred, but which society has not yet understood or experienced. Each story of the girls in this project is a reflection of ongoing processes in society and serves as a means to raise important issues.
Marysya Myanovska — conceptual photographer, volunteer and marketer of the women's veteran movement VETERANKA. She graduated from the Kyiv National Trade and Economic University and the Viktor Marushchenko School of Contemporary Photography, the NOOR photojournalism course in Düsseldorf. She was born and lives in Kyiv, and in recent years she has lived between Poland and Ukraine, but since 2023 she has returned to Ukraine. Marisya explores the change of generations through her photo projects. Her first project tells about her brother Valery, who died, and teenagers from Troyeshchyna. Currently, it focuses on images of young people fighting for Ukraine. Marisa's Instagram.
The material was worked on:
Researcher of the topic, author of the text: Vera Labych
Bildeditor: Vyacheslav Ratynskyi
Literary Editor: Julia Foutei
Site Manager: Vladislav Kuhar
UAPP is an independent association of professional Ukrainian photographers, designed to protect their interests, support, develop and promote Ukrainian photography as an important element of national culture.
UAPP's activities span educational, social, research and cultural initiatives, as well as book publishing.
UAPP represents Ukrainian professional photography in the international photographic community and is an official member of the Federation of European Photographers (FEP) — an international organization representing more than 50,000 professional photographers in Europe and other countries around the world.
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