The finalists for the LOBA 2025 photography award have recently been announced. Among others, Stanislav Ostrous made it to the finals with his series Peaceful. Grey Zone. In this series, he photographed people living in frontline and de-occupied territories in the Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson Regions. This is reported by the publication Lyuk.
The photographer travelled extensively to frontline towns and villages, delivering food and essential supplies.
“This series began during those trips to the border villages of the Kharkiv Region. I photographed ordinary people who had survived the occupation, suffered from shelling, lost their homes, and were living without electricity, water or communication, in cold, dilapidated houses or chicken coops or basements. These shots were included in the series Peaceful. Grey Zone.” he says.
During the shoot, the photographer was repeatedly caught in shelling, and in Kherson he had to run away from Russian drones several times.
Stanislav Ostrous was nominated for the award by Serhiy Melnychenko, founder of the MYPH school of conceptual photography and the first Ukrainian to win the LOBA award (in 2017).
The Leica Oskar Barnack Award is one of the most prestigious awards for photographers from around the world, established in 1979. The winner of this year’s award will receive €40,000 and a certificate for €10,000 worth of Leica equipment. The winners will be announced – and the award ceremony for both categories will take place – in Wetzlar (Germany) in October 2025.