УYY is an abbreviation for Україна – the Slavic word for Ukraine – followed by the initials of Yelena Yemchuk, the author of the book on display at PaperLab Gallery. The book by the Ukrainian-born artist and photographer is a personal confession, telling humorous yet disturbing stories from a country at war, blurring the boundaries between the real and the imaginary.
The project brings together the author’s photographs, his personal archive and his own paintings. The scenes revealed by the images invite us on a journey into a timeless, dreamlike world. Wandering through childhood memories and visions, we are captivated by a mysterious sense of nostalgia for people and places we don’t even know. Yelena Yemchuk conveys emotions with ironic lightness, yet tells poignant stories of childhood, freedom and war. Her work is multidimensional and diverse not only in the subjects she depicts, but also in the mediums she works in – painting, drawing, photography and film.