Paintings Of War In Separatist-Controlled Donetsk

Anna Varkhameyeva was a history student at Donetsk National University in 2014 when conflict erupted between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces. “When the war started, I felt the need to express what was happening inside and around me. So I started to paint pictures showing the war and the occupation of Donetsk,” Varkhameyeva said. In the summer of 2016, she fled the separatist-controlled region, concealing her paintings by sewing them into the bottom of her bag. Her works depict the physical and psychological effects of the ongoing conflict.