Igor Chekachkov

Ukrainian photojournalist Igor Chekachkov’s project is a book of Polaroid photographs taken during the 2022 Russian invasion. Raw and touching, 100 days of war reflects on personal identity, unity, community, memories, home and the conditions of conflict. In one entry, Chekachkov writes “The diary became more about the life-altering impact of war, how humans adapt and face new realities.” His imagery combines documentary realism along with surreal images of destruction, suffering and loss.

Cynthia MaiWa Sitei

Exploring Kenya’s colonial legacies from a contemporary perspective, Cynthia MaiWa Sitei’s spear of a nation, provokes discussion around power and representation. Sitei combines archival images by British social anthropologist Edward Evan Evans-Pritchard with her own photographs. Through the exploration of this topic, Sitei investigates her bloodline with which she felt she had little connection. Soft, black and white and sepia images encapsulate rural space, community and an understanding of a shared identity.

Cian Oba-Smith

Among Flowers, Tears and Rain, by Cian Oba-Smith explores grief, loss and community, focusing on misrepresented and overlooked communities, recording the effects of knife violence in London. The majority of the images depict the aftermath of the loss of someone due to knife crime; flowers around lamp posts and along fences in the city. Oba-Smith also captures portraits of those directly impacted such as family and friends of the victims, along with poignant statements displayed alongside the images.