Future Perspectives

The project highlights the territorial conflict between the urban development machine and the needs of a large municipal shelter, hosting several thousand animals. This conflict is an example of the gentrification phenomenon in the realities of modern Russia. In a series of photographs I pose several questions: do domesticated animals have the right to preserve their temporary habitat? Can an entity that has significant power put its interests forward and ignore the needs of a weaker one? I expose this conflict by displaying three sides of the story: - the expanding city, - volunteers and their work, - and dogs themselves. Many images were taken from the animals’ perspective, conveying their states. I often anthropomorphize dogs that have become human companions over a long history of coexistence. The project is released as a photobook with images of dogs that became the main characters of the story. The book comes with an accompanying booklet shedding more light on the shelter and the city, as well as the volunteers’ narrative and the feelings they share when talking about each dog they have been taking care of.