A documentary photography project about recovery after war injuries in Ukraine
Photolucida selected The Ninth Floor, an OchiMedia documentary photography project about recovery after war injuries in Ukraine, as a Critical Mass 2026 Top 200 Finalist.
The project was photographed in May 2026 on the ninth floor of the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Clinical Hospital during an international reconstructive surgical mission. The floor housed patients undergoing treatment for complex injuries, many of them Ukrainian veterans.
Rather than documenting primarily inside the operating room, The Ninth Floor focuses on the time surrounding surgery: patients waiting, recovering, talking with one another, and living together in shared hospital rooms.
The project developed during the final days of the mission, when I began making portraits of patients on the floor. Their expressions and interactions reflected very different experiences of the same place—anticipation, pain, humor, uncertainty, and relief.
Every morning at 9 a.m., activity in the hospital stopped for Ukraine’s national minute of silence honoring those killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine. That daily interruption became part of the rhythm of life on the ninth floor as well.
Critical Mass is Photolucida’s annual international photography competition and portfolio review program. The Top 200 portfolios advance to the next stage of jury review.
View the complete photo essay and learn more about the project: The Ninth Floor.