Ukraine War: Pictures from world-leading photographers go on show in major new exhibition at Hull University

A direct hit by a Russian shell on a multi-storey building which killed a young married couple and a child. Mariupol, March 11, 2022. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

WARNING: Contains distressing images and detail

By Simon Bristow

A major new photography exhibition featuring images of the Ukraine conflict by some of the world’s leading war photographers has opened at the University of Hull.

The display, called Ukraine: The Price of Freedom, features around 90 pictures by highly-acclaimed photographers and is open daily at the Brynmor Jones Library until September 2.

The exhibition – which is stunning but challenging – is believed to be the most significant collection of photography from the Ukraine War yet staged in a British gallery.

A woman runs after her husband, who is holding their 18-month-old son wounded by Russian shelling. Doctors were unable to save him. Mariupol, March 4, 2022. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

It seeks to show, alongside the horror of the war, the valour and unshakeable spirit of the Ukrainian people in the face of death and destruction.

John Bernasconi, Director of the University of Hull Art Collection, said: “It’s a great privilege to be able to bring together this extraordinary exhibition recording the war through the work of some of the world’s leading war photographers.

A group of children waiting in a bomb shelter during an air raid. Mariupol, March 2022. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

“Their striking and often moving images show the horror and destruction of the conflict alongside inspiring scenes of courage and hope. Among the vast media coverage of the invasion, these photographs are probably the images that will remain longest in our minds.”

One of the central images in the showcase has been taken by Argentinian photographer Rodrigo Abd, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winner. The image shows six-year-old Vlad at the grave of his mother, who was buried in the courtyard of their house in Bucha after she was killed by Russian soldiers.

Bilozerka village completely flooded as a result of the explosion of the dam at the Kakhovka reservoir. Kherson region, June 9, 2023. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

The photographs span the beginning of the war, the shock of the first rocket attacks and aerial bombardments of Ukrainian cities, and the killing of civilians in the towns of Bucha, Irpin and Borodyanka in March 2022.

Another section is dedicated to the Mariupol University (which is twinned with the University of Hull) which was ruined as a result of a Russian missile attack on March 16, 2022.

Rescuers evacuate people against a backdrop of rapidly rising water. Kherson, July 7, 2023. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

Photographs by Evgen Maloletka (winner of two Pulitzer Prizes in 2023, Guardian Photographer of the Year 2023 and World Press Photo of the Year winner) show the impact of the Russian occupation of Mariupol.

Photographs by Prix de la Photographie winner, Dmytro Kozatsky, show the heroic resistance of the defenders of the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works, who were forced to fight encircling attackers while surviving underground.

There are memorable portraits of Ukrainian soldiers, doctors and firefighters in the dramatic moments of their military and everyday life. The work highlights numerous moments in time and will serve as a reminder of Ukrainian bravery.

Volunteers bury the bodies of residents who died from Russian bombing and shelling in a mass grave. Mariupol, March 2022. Picture credit: Evgen Maloletka / Associated Press

A special video for the exhibition has also been created and there is a soundtrack to accompany the display.

The exhibition is open from 10am to 5pm daily, and until 7pm on Tuesdays, in the Brynmor Jones Library at the University of Hull until September 2.