Kirill Ovchinnikov / Krymsk. Eyewitness. Direct speech

Kirill Ovchinnikov: «It was not my aim to investigate the reasons of the flood, it was not my aim to find those who are guilty, I didn’t count those who were dead. I was passing simply through, from house to house and with each and every story the moments of that night appeared in front of my eyes. Each and every wall, window, horologe were telling me more then witness could tell. On each wall there was a line, the level, up to which the water arrived, dirty slush, in which helpless people had to swim. This line separated the life and the death.

10 centimeters to ceiling means 10 centimeters of life and air. Unbroken window or closed door — no way out... ( I was moving from one street to another following the way of the water, the way without any human logic, the way with the logic of death ) The tragedies and stories with happy rescue end didn’t depend on the strength of the house... But every story began with the words...» nobody warned us"...or "we woke up in the water«...and with the question «though they knew...why?» Some stories were true narrations which deserved more than I could right down in my notepad... Probably, overflown with the sorrow and despair, I forgot to mention something or just mixed up a few things, for this forgive me those with whom I spoke."

Krymsk. Witnesses. Direct Speech

The town of Krymsk in the Krasnodar region was virtually destroyed by a devastating flood during the night of 7 July 2012. At least 170 people lost their lives (widely divergent statistics have been given by the Krymsk region administration, the Ministry of Emergency Situations and witnesses to the event), and rebuilding a town that was to all extents and purposes wiped from the face of the earth will take many years. The actual reasons for the disaster are still unknown. Photographer Kirill Ovchinnikov arrived in Krymsk on 11 July and spent four days in what remained of the town.

This project first appeared in the magazine Russky Reporter, which commissioned Ovchinnikov’s trip to Krymsk. It is now presented as an exhibition entitled Krymsk. Witnesses. Direct Speech at the Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow. Ovchinnikov records a major calamity that changed the lives of its inhabitants forever in the best traditions of the reportage genre, although his view is by no means indifferent and he is able to empathise and share their grief, leaving the viewer face to face with the people depicted in these photographs. Nearly all the survivors tell their own personal account of that horrendous night, and the repercussions of this catastrophe and the pain of losing all those who perished on 7 July 2012 are conveyed through inverted commas and ellipses in the printed text.

Kirill Ovchinnikov was born in Moscow in 1965. Member of the Union of Artists since 1990. Professional photographer since 2000. Has worked with cutting-edge journals such as Elle, Esquire, Harper’s Bazaar, Wallpaper, AD, Abitare (Milan), Vokrug Sveta, Russky Reporter, Snob, etc.

Awards:
2nd & 3rd place: Professional Category, International Photography Awards 2007, Los Angeles, California
Hasselblad Masters semi-finalist, HASSELBLAD MASTERS COMPETITION 2008
Honourable Mention, PX3 2008 Competition