As a visual artist based in Manchester, my practice explores the impact of conflict and occupation through portraiture, narrative, and material investigation. Since autumn 2024, I’ve been working closely with displaced Ukrainian students now living in Manchester, documenting their stories through painting, photography, film, and found materials. Their experiences of loss, resilience, and hope challenge both media narratives and the illusion of geopolitical distance.
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This project is both personal and political—a response to the silences that often surround trauma, and a call to see beyond borders. A recent research trip to Ukraine in April 2025, including time on the Donetsk-Kharkiv border, deepened my engagement with these themes.
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Art cannot undo conflict, but it can preserve memory, foster empathy, and amplify voices that must be heard. 

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