Accession Code: wu1005 Title: Anna Alexeevna, Kich-Gorodok Date completed: 2010 Classification: Photograph Medium: C-type print Height (mm): 495 Width (mm): 470 Depth (mm): Inscription: Location Name: Faculty of Arts Building Location Description: Location Floor: 3

Kichmengsky Town (known as Kich Gorodok) is a small town in the Vologda region, 400 km north of Moscow. Here, as in the rest of Russia, it is surrounded by deserted villages. In Soviet times, these villages were home to thousands of people; now only a handful remains. As state farms cease to operate there is no work, no water, no gas; families migrate to the cities.

Ivanova explains: "I shot portraits of residents of Kich Town and surrounding villages to try to capture and convey the atmosphere of the countryside at the moment. Tragedy and absurdity live side by side ... life is almost impossible for outsiders to comprehend."