45

Winner of the 2020 MACK First Book Award

45 describes a sequence of image fragments that emphasise and contrast human presence in their physical surroundings. Upon closer examination, the viewer becomes aware that all images are taken through a train window. The photographer’s journey, which takes him from Ukraine to Oslo through present-day Europe, is inspired by train journeys taken by relatives in 1945 and 1978, leading them to death or freedom. At this point in all three journeys, each family member turned 45. The book’s narrative challenges the issue of forced immigration within the boundaries of Europe’s past and present. Eight months after the author’s return in 2013, a new conflict erupted in the Donetsk region, leading to an ongoing war.