Anastasia Khoroshilova Moscow, Russia, b. 1978

For Anastasia Khoroshilova’s Russkie series, she wanted to document the variety of people in Russia who “arrived on the land of the Russian state from various other countries to live together in conditions shaped by history.” As observed by art theorist and critic Viktor Misiano, this social documentary effort by Khoroshilova to photograph a diverse group of people recalls portraits by August Sander to document every kind of profession in Germany. In Russkie #80, a family sits closely together on a bench, completely filling the horizontal width of the frame. The men are dressed in uniform, and everyone stares straight ahead at the camera. This photograph recalls a time when having one’s portrait taken was a big event, one in which families dressed up and went to the photo studio. The fact that the photograph is taken outdoors gives a more casual feel, though the presence of the camera is still evident.