Celebrating Maslenitsa in Voronezh

The village of Chertovitsy at the end of February is a place where time slows down and people become children for a while. The projects “Zhatva” and Farm Village gathered everyone who wanted to say goodbye to winter for real. Circle dances, pillows, weird masks, and pancakes so hot they stick to your fingers before you can take a bite.

I went there without big expectations, just to capture the mood. The mood found me first. The sun decided today was its day and broke through the branches, lighting up faces. Someone dove headfirst into a snowdrift, someone was seriously discussing summer plans, and the moon pretended to be just a prop while actually keeping a close eye on everything happening below.

In these 23 frames, there are no heroes in the usual sense. There are masks hiding smiles from total strangers. There are arms swinging pillows. There are glances you catch by accident and can’t forget later. This is just a day that stayed in the frame exactly as it was. Warm, a little ridiculous, and deeply human.