Anastasia Khoroshilova Moscow, Russia, b. 1978

Bezhin Lug (Bezhin Meadow) is the second major series produced by Anastasia Khoroshilova in her prolific career as a photographer. The series are portraits taken in the Russian countryside, a project to which she returned in 2015-18. Bezhin Lug is inspired by writings and films produced about transitional moments of the past, present, and future of Russia. For this project, she states, “I simply wanted to make familiar and individually recognizable the faces of the people who have lived for generations in a special, often tragic dimension of the history and time of my country. I sought for at least a glimmer of human hope, honor and dignity.” Bogorditsa 3 is a striking photograph of three people working in a field—two women, one old and one young, with a young boy. All three are red from the sun and give a slight smile back at the camera with a certain amount of pride in their work. It is unclear if their work is done or if they have just taken a quick break to snap the photograph.