Valery Melnikov
Underground (Series)
DESCRIPTION
Ongoing conflict in Ukraine between separatists and the Ukrainian government army led the country to the full-scale hostilities.
This series of photos was taken in Donbass. It depicts the last remaining residents of bombed out villages in the combat zone. I met these people in the village Veseloe near Donetsk airport in September of 2015. During attacks, people hide in the basements of destroyed houses.
Mainly, these are older men and women that have been left on their own.
Some have decided to stay and fight to the end; others simply have nowhere to go.
Many of their relatives have either left or died.
As Sergei, a resident of the village of Veseloe, told me: “I never understood what peace was before, or how important it is. You can die at any moment here, but I’m not going anywhere.”
AUTHOR
Valery Melnikov is a graduate of Stavropol State University ran on becoming an award winning photographer and reporter, who over a decade successfully works for international news agency "RIA Novosti" and "Kommersant" newspaper. Valery has also worked as a freelancer for AFP news agency in 2009-2010. When not on the work assignments, Valery runs multiple independent projects and exhibitions of his images that he brings back from those trips. His professional biography includes coverage of Ukranian conflict of 2014 to present; uprising of Mali Republic in 2013, Syrian Civil war coverage in 2012-2015; Lebanese war in 2006; Infamous conflict between Georgia and South Ossetia in 2008 and hostage taking raids by terrorists in Stavropol region back in 2001 and Beslan in 2004.
Awards: Winner of the “The Circle of Life” 2016 contest , International Photo festival “Vilnius Photo Circle”, Lithuania; 2016 — Two Awards of Excellence in the Picture of the Year International (POYi), USA; 2015 — 1st Prize in Photojournalism category of the LensCulture Visual Storytelling Awards, USA; 2015 — 2nd Prize in the current affairs category of the Sony World Photography awards, UK 2015 — ANI - PIXPALACE AWARD, France; 2015 — 2nd Prize in the DAYS Japan.
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