Stages of Air is a 2025 photo series that explores life along the front line of the Russo-Ukrainian War. It focuses on Donbas, a region partially occupied by Russia and the site of some of the war’s bloodiest battles.
The Donbas landscape near the front line radiates tranquility. It would be easy to succumb to its lulling beauty—if not for the constant echoes of aerial bomb explosions, drone strikes, and artillery fire. Sometimes, the blasts are so close you can feel the ground shake; other times, you hear the whistle of a ricocheting bullet nearby.
This series is an attempt to process the experience of being near the front line, where, even after four years of war, the mind struggles to accept its reality. At times, it feels more like a nightmare one might eventually wake from.
Soldiers come under attack by enemy drones
Soldiers come under attack by enemy drones while building fortifications near the front line Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
Arsen, an internally displaced person from occupied Bakhmut in the Donetsk region
Arsen 16 an internally displaced person from occupied Bakhmut in the Donetsk region celebrates his school graduation with new classmates in a village near the front line Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
Soldiers participate in endurance tests near the front line
Soldiers participate in physical and psychological endurance tests near the front line Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
A soldier who fell to the ground
A soldier who fell to the ground during intensive pre-combat training Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
Medical aid post on the front line
Medical aid post on the front line Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
Fortification construction along the front line
Fortification construction along the front line Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
Portrait of a paratrooper awarded for bravery
Portrait of a paratrooper awarded for bravery Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
A search team collects the remains of unidentified soldiers after combat
A search team collects the remains of unidentified soldiers after combat Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
An exhausted soldier rests on the ground
An exhausted soldier rests on the ground during intensive pre-combat training Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
A priest pays tribute at the graves of monks killed in the Russian bombing
A priest pays tribute at the graves of monks killed in the Russian bombing of the Holy Mountains Lavra during the full-scale invasion Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
The front line
The front line Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025
A dog stands in front of a mine dump
A dog stands in front of a mine dump Donetsk Oblast Ukraine 2025