Julie Poly

In this photo series, the feminist photographer toys with the tensions between the domestic and women’s identity in Ukraine through a fluoro fashion viewpoint. Fusing her nostalgic lens that taps highlights of the 1990s and early 2000s, she presents contemporary Ukrainian womanhood with glitchy noughties moods.

“In the 2000s, glamorous photo shoots usually took place in fancy cottages and mansions, luxury apartments and hotels”, Julie says – “we decided to approach this theme with irony, so we had a similar glam party, but in a typical 'fancy' Ukrainian apartment.”. It’s a subject Julie knows well. Growing up in Ukraine, she came of age in a time of significant change for women, whilst also maintaining a die-hard love for opulence and expression through glamor and fashion.

She wanted to spotlight the “Even as women make strides, the attitudes and cultural beliefs still remain in some areas of society”, she says of coming of age in Ukraine only a few years after the country became dependent from Russia in 1991.

In November 2021, Russia mobilised a reported 100,000 troops to the Ukraine–Russia border. This act has had a huge impact on the lives of women in the country, something that Julie highlights in this series. “The political situation affects my art practice directly. I think it’s in artists’ nature to reflect on the climate they live in”, she says.

Still based in the capital city, she believes that in times of political struggle, artists can do some of their best work. “For instance, now I’m working on a new project about Stanytsia Luhanska, a pedestrian crossing checkpoint between Ukraine and the occupied territories, where all trafficking of temporarily displaced people is concentrated, as well as the cultural heritage of the eastern region. The purpose of the project is to draw public attention to the problems of migrants and people who remained in the occupied territories; and talk about Luhansk and Donetsk regions as culturally rich regions.”.