War-Life Balance

In February 2025, three years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, I spent ten days in Kyiv. I wanted to understand what it means to live in a city where war has become part of everyday life.

At night, I struggled to sleep through the sound of drone attacks, sometimes whispering a prayer that I would wake up the next morning. During the day, people went to work, drank coffee and carried on with familiar routines. My stay lasted ten days. For those living in Kyiv, the war had already lasted three years.

War–Life Balance explores the uneasy coexistence of danger and normality. Continuing with everyday life does not mean the threat has disappeared, but rather that life cannot simply be put on hold until the war ends.