Yurii Veres is a Ukrainian documentary photographer and musician, the frontman of the rock band “Kamianyi Hist.”

Since 2022, he has been working extensively in cities and villages affected by Russia’s war in Ukraine. His route runs through the destroyed streets of the Kyiv, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, and Mykolaiv regions, as well as other parts of the country where the war has brought shelling, destruction, and the loss of everyday life.

This work resulted in the photobook “Light Through the Ruins” — a visual narrative about people and places living within the reality of war.

He does not photograph war as an event. His images are about what remains after: people returning to their homes, the silence of damaged rooms, and small signs of life among the debris.

Yurii’s work exists at the intersection of documentary photography and personal history. An important layer of the project is formed by woven ornaments and ritual cloths created by his grandmother, Hanna Veres, a People’s Artist of Ukraine. Some of her works were destroyed during a Russian missile strike on the museum in Ivankiv in 2022.

His photographs have been exhibited internationally and are used in reports by humanitarian organizations. He collaborates with the United Nations, documenting the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.

Alongside photography, he is also a musician and songwriter.

You can order the book on the Bilka Publishing website.

By purchasing Light Through the Ruins, you help bring this story to readers in Ukraine and around the world. Part of the proceeds will support future editions in other languages and charitable initiatives.

Order your copy today.