STORIES
«Silmagia» In Occupation:

The Story of Interior Photographer Ihor Method, Who Today Captures the War-Torn Houses
Ivan Chernichkin
Photo: Ihor Method
June 20, 2022
Before the war, interior photographer Ihor Method traveled a lot in Ukraine. As he says, he «was engaged in research documentaries.» The main subject of his research was rural shops and other public places in Ukrainian villages and towns. In a word - «Silmagia».
Photo: Ihor Method
Until February 24, the project's Instagram page featured photos of rural shops, bus stations, cafeterias, and public places that have hardly changed since Soviet times. However, now the Russian invasion has played a role in the 'design' of rural interiors.
Photo: Ihor Method
Zaborona spoke with Ihor about traveling in Ukraine, the start of a full-scale war, and volunteering, as well as how his professional activities help capture the effects of the invasion.
«While traveling in Ukraine, I began to pay attention to shops, because they are everywhere. Silmag (rural shop) has become an object of observation because it is present even where there is sometimes no post office. By the way, it often happens that the store and the post office are in one building. The trigger for the shooting was a store letter sign, which is almost always unique. Such signs are 40-60 years old,» says the photographer.
Photo: Ihor Method
In four years, Ihor traveled throughout the right-bank Ukraine, Chernihiv, and Sumy regions. He planned to delve his research into the regions of eastern Ukraine. But his plans were ruined by the war.
Photo: Ihor Method
On February 24, he woke up from the explosion but did not immediately realize what it was. Ihor learned about the beginning of a full-scale Russian invasion from a morning video of a Kyiv cyclist blog.
Video: It's a Good Trip / YouTube
He was in Kryukivshchyna, a village not far from Kyiv: he took care of a cat and the house of a friend who went to the Carpathians. That day Ihor went out into the field above the village to see what was happening in the capital and on the Odesa highway. A rocket flew over him, and it was shot down by the Ukrainian air defense before his eyes.
Photo: Ihor Method
The photographer decided that he should be as useful as possible. On February 25, he went to the Vyshneve City Council and then to the Kryukivshchyna Village Council to find out how to help them. Thus his volunteer work began.
Initially, Ihor collected things and food for the territorial defense, looking abroad for equipment and ammunition for soldiers who were sent to the east. Then a small warehouse was formed, from which he and his friends delivered humanitarian aid to the occupied villages and towns of Kyiv and Chernihiv regions.
Photo: Ihor Method
When the situation in the Kyiv region stabilized, there was more time for travel specifically for filming, because it was quite difficult to shoot videos during humanitarian trips. Ihor Metod, together with documentary filmmaker Oksana Karpovych, traveled to the occupied cities to record the consequences of the crimes of the Russian army.
Photo: Ihor Method
Using his experience as an interior photographer, Ihor captures the changes that the war has brought to people's homes. This observation, in his opinion, is very important, even if we are talking about the old Khrushchev-era building in Borodyanka.
Photo: Ihor Method
In most cases, he tries to find the owner of the apartment or his neighbors to get their permission to film. There are cases when this is impossible - Ihor says that sometimes he feels like a looter. Although it is important to photograph these interiors, there is always the moral question of whether photos can be published later.
«Especially when you take pictures and there are personal belongings [in the apartment]. Or the bed - this is something so intimate, and you stand here without an invitation. There are many situations when you do not know what to do with it, but you want to capture it. Then at home, you continue to think about whether you have the right to publish the picture. And you either find the answer for yourself or you don't,» says the photographer.
Video Ihor Method
During his travels, Ihor Method tries to record short stories from the lives of locals. Among them, there are quite funny ones, such as the story of Hryhoriy from Andriivka, Makariv district.
Photo: Ihor Method
The man survived the entire occupation, living in his house with Russian soldiers. While fleeing, the occupiers set fire to their own Ural truck with ammunition, which stood in Hryhoriy's yard. The explosions destroyed the house to the ground.
Photo: Ihor Method
The community of the Faroe Islands raised money for temporary housing for Hryhoriy. Both the host himself, and Ihor Method were extremely surprised. «How could this be? Where are the islands, and where are we - what a lucky break!», the photographer told the man from Andriivka in surprise.
Photo: Ihor Method
Ihor is very impressed by how quickly people organize themselves and start to put their towns and villages in order. They clean the streets and roads, try to restore their often completely destroyed houses, pick up and feed the neighboring cats and dogs. They are trying to erase the traces of the war from their lives as soon as possible.
«And, most importantly, there is no such thing: «Oh! We lost everything! This is the end!» There stands a house, the roof is covered with a brand new membrane. And the flowers grow around it. Everything is already plowed up and planted. And you are surprised: Wow! How quickly they put things in order!», says the photographer.
Photo: Ihor Method
Ihor wants to continue filming the interiors of the destroyed apartments and even planned to go to Mykolayiv. But at the moment he cannot do that, because he lost the opportunity to earn money because of the war. Most of the orders came from interior designers, who either left the country or their work stopped.
Photo: Ihor Method
«If I could basically resolve the issue with money, I would have one hundred percent clear plans to continue this project,» says the author. And, smiling, he adds: «I'll probably look for a job in IT.»
Photo: Ihor Method
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