Photographer Danila Tkachenko set out to document the hermits of Russia and Ukraine who have crossed the tree line to exclude themselves […]
Photographer Danila Tkachenko set out to document the hermits of Russia and Ukraine who have crossed the tree line to exclude themselves completely from society.
“I am concerned about the issue of internal freedom in the modern society: is it at all reachable, when you’re surrounded by social framework all the time? School, work, family — once in this cycle, you are a prisoner of your own position, and have to do what you’re supposed to. You should be pragmatic and strong, or become an outcast or a lunatic. How to remain yourself in the midst of this?” writes Tkachenko.
And that IS the question, but until you take a moment to step outside of social context and the roles that bind you, you will never be able to answer that question.
“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front the only essential facts of life. And see if I could not learn what it had to teach and not, when I came to die, discovered that I had not lived.”
“I grew up in the heart of the big city, but I’ve always been drawn to wildlife — for me it’s a place where I can hide and feel the real me, my true self, out of the social context.”
Scroll down to see the photos.
