In the new issue of “Conversations about Restoration,” we talk to the famous Kherson photo artist and photojournalist Oleksandr Andryushchenko about Kherson, which has been suffering from enemy shelling for two years, and about the mood of the Kherson residents who live here.
Before the full-scale invasion, Oleksandr Andryushchenko had his own photo studio and was the official photographer of the “Melpomene of Tavria” and “Tavrian Games” festivals. His artworks could be seen at numerous exhibitions in his native Kherson and beyond. The war made its editions, but Oleksandr Andryushchenko did not leave his favorite work. Today, he works as a photo correspondent for the local media platform “Vgoru.”
Oleksandr Andryushchenko spent the entire occupation in the city and knows better than anyone how the city has changed, what its residents live for, and their moods. We asked Oleksandr about his vision and whether there have been any positive changes over the years of Kherson's liberation from the occupiers.
“I remember well November 11, 2022, when Kherson realized it was free. I remember those emotions, the emotions of people, my own emotions. Everyone cried: women, men, children, even the military. I remember this week of euphoria and joy. Then there were some hopes that the guys would quickly chase the enemy, and everything would end quickly, but... But the happiness did not last long. Heavy shelling began, but, honestly, Kherson residents are better off without light and under shelling than under occupation. Now, people's moods are different. Many are tired of waiting for something better, of constant tension. The Kherson residents almost do not react to air raids and shelling. Not at all. People are not used to shelling; they have adapted.”
Despite the terrible security situation, the city lives on — utilities and businesses work, people volunteer, help each other, weave nets, etc. But, as Oleksandr Andryushchenko says, he gets the impression that in Kherson, the authorities and residents are two different worlds that do not intersect.
“I never relied on the authorities. I lived my life. I was raised in such a way that you have to rely on yourself. Kherson is surviving like this now. Kherson is like a big hive in which everyone helps each other. People in Kherson have not changed; they have shown themselves. I do not know how much the authorities are involved in this, but they like to “check their boxes.” To whom I take my hat off are the municipal workers of our city, who clean the streets and repair the electricity under shelling. This phrase “indestructible Kherson” is already confusing to everyone, but the city is really indestructible.”
Oleksandr Andryushchenko's house is on the temporarily occupied left bank of the Kherson region. The occupiers lived in his house, and Oleksandr had almost come to terms with the fact that he had lost everything, like most residents of the Kherson region. But there is still hope for a return to his native village.
Since Oleksandr Andryushchenko (as a special correspondent) communicates every day not only with ordinary people on the street but also with representatives of businesses operating in Kherson, we asked what still keeps them here: "We are all crazy here (laughs). Some people cannot do without their hometown. Some people love Kherson, regardless of how it looks today. We will do everything to make the city bloom again! Even today, new coffee shops are opening in the city, and flower shops are operating because people need some kind of consolation and comfort."
Oleksandr Andryushchenko considers his mission and task as a photojournalist to be to do everything possible to ensure that people know what is happening in Kherson, hear about Kherson, and know the truth about how people are being hunted with the help of drones and how Kherson residents are being shelled both within the country and abroad.
“We are interested in showing people’s lives in the current conditions. This is a kind of phototherapy.”
Watch about the unbreakable Kherson and its people in our new issue of “Conversations about Restoration” and join the discussion.