Maryna Semenkova continues to participate in The Me Before The War No Longer Exists: Ukrainian Portraits, an ongoing participatory photographic project by Ukrainian-born, Baltimore-based photographer Elena Volkova. The project’s title comes from a phrase Maryna spoke during an interview with the artist.

Maryna and Elena first met in Berlin in 2023 for their first photographic session. At the time, Maryna was living in exile after being displaced from Ukraine by Russia’s full-scale invasion.

In July 2026, they reunited for a second photo session at Funkhaus Berlin, the former headquarters of East German radio during the GDR era.

Through collaboration and the shared process of image-making, Volkova’s project explores how displacement shapes memory, belonging, and identity. Bringing together the experiences of Ukrainian women, it is developing into an evolving archive of personal and collective histories.

Maryna’s continued participation reflects the ongoing nature of this process, as the experience of displacement and its impact on identity unfold over time.

More details here https://www.elenavolkova.com/artwork/ukrainian-portraits