Artist Statement

 

Maksim Gaganov is a photographer working with themes of identity, post-memory and fear of loss. Moving from Russia to the UK at the age of 39 shaped his entire topics, asking himself and others who we are and where we belong. 

 

He expresses himself through fragmented, non-linear narratives and the presence of emptiness - both literal and emotional - within the frame. The human body appears not as a subject of identity but as an abstract, depersonalised form, mirroring the instability of memory and the vulnerability of existence.

Mixing human images and rural landscapes, Maksim creates visual spaces which are not representations of real places, but emotional construct - silent, slow, and open - where the boundaries between body, and land dissolve. It is a universe that perhaps never existed, but one that makes space for everyone’s memories, absences, or longing.

 

He uses analogue photography as a medium. Started as a hobby, shooting on film felt almost accidental. But over time, it became an integral part of his approach. Though often considered a cliché, film allows one to slow down and become more present in the moment. Most importantly, it helps to move away from the clinical precision of digital photography. The decision to work with black-and-white film is also deliberate: it helps to strip away the markers of time.

Maksim intentionally leaves space for the viewer. He wants people to approach the images, to bring their own memories, questions and stories.

 

In that scenario the search for meaning is more important than the answer itself.