THE suitcases OF ABANDONMENT

The last day of peace, the first night of war

What was life like in the gentle privacy of the family albums on our phones the day before the chaos and irreversibility of war set in?

The Last Day of Peace, First Night of War digital installation was built from photographs donated to us by Ukrainians and Romanians alike, along with stories of the last days of peace before our lives were turned upside down by the fallout from the war in Ukraine .

“My name is Natalia Nesterenko; I come from the Donetsk region. In June of 2013 we moved out of that...

Tudor C. Țighiliu

February 20, 2022, afternoon. I had recently moved into one of these 1960s Khrusciovska blocks of flats....

Alyona Lazareva

My name is Alyona Lazareva, I am 33 years old and a refugee from Ukraine. I’ve been living in Bucharest...

The memory of the last day of peace in my phone. The Brâncuși Day, at the Cesianu-Racoviță Palace. I...

“I work for a large pharmaceutical company. On February 23 we had a conference in Kyiv attended...

Gabriel Obirsan

I saw the Museum’s advertisement and searched through my phone to see what photo I had from around...

Victoria Kondrușenko, 36 years old

“Before the war, we had such wonderful and perfect lives. The photo is taken before the war, in a park...

Antonia Celina, product manager

I knew the war would start. Just before, my little daughter Ester and I had COVID. I was fine, Ester,...

Alla Denisova-Put

“We used to throw a lot of parties with our friends. In February we had such a party. I knew war...

Paul-Adrian Mihai, volunteer

The last picture from my phone before the Russian invasion of Ukraine was taken on Sunday, 20 February....

Ștefania Oprina, librarian

I ended the last day of peace dancing. Before and late after midnight. I was tired after a good long...

Ioana Popescu, ethnologist

My only photo from February (sadly, 2 February) is related to the arrival of Pricop the puppy in our...

Olya Grebenik - Ukrainian illustrator

I have on my phone a photo of my little daughter Vera from the 24th in the morning. I used to take her...

Iulia Țurcanu, PR Specialist at the Museum of Abandonment

I felt sick that morning. A heaviness in my body and symptoms of a cold… but what if it’s...

Oana Drăgulinescu, founder of The Museum of Abandonment

From 24 February 2022 I have on my phone a photo of a giant tulip bouquet. There’s a greenhouse...

Ioana Pelehatăi, Scena9 editor

Wednesday, 23 February 2022, 9:44 AM. Drumul Taberei, from my short walk from home to the bus stop that...

Anastasiia Konovalova, teacher

This is the last photo from our previous life. For some reason, just like that, on 23 February 2022,...

Ira, psychotherapist, 33 years old

“For me, the war did not start on February 24, 2022, but in 2014. That was when I left my home...

Anastasia Staicu, editorial director of Seneca Publishing House

23 February 2022 was an ordinary day at Seneca Anticafe, we were preparing for the launch of the book...

Bogdan Dincă, photojournalist

I spent the week before the war started with the kids on holiday. We went to the mountains, visited loved...

Margareta, teacher, 33 years old

“I’m an anxious person, that’s just the way I am. And that’s why it was so hard...

Tatiana, retired, residing in Bucharest since spring (2022)

“I miss home, I miss Vinnytsia, my hometown, the place where I raised my children and where I have...

On 24 February, I was out with my dog in our quiet neighbourhood in Brussels, after a day when I couldn’t...

Oana Stoica, performance art critic

This is Obama the bear, my flatmate. I hate taking selfies, so I photograph him or our other flatmate,...

Natalia, doctor

”On February 21, 2022, I went on a vacation to Dubai with a large group of doctors, my hospital colleagues....

Olya Grebenik, Ukrainian illustrator

I have on my phone a photo of my little daughter Vera from the 24th in the morning. I used to take her...

This is the last picture before the war. I remember it was a beautiful and peaceful late winter day,...

Project financed by CARE, coordinated and implemented nationally by the SERA Romania Foundation with the support of CARE France and FONPC.

Contact

contact@muzeulabandonului.ro

Copyright © 2023 MuzeulAbandonului.ro. All rights reserved.