The book Control Refresh is the result of my research into the impact of political events on young people within a number of post-Soviet countries. Over the past three years I visited teenagers in remote cities in Russia and Eastern Europe. I made an extensive collection of photos of youngsters who shared their vulnerability with me, who joined me in their boredom and who told me about their dreams. The lives of these young people are strongly influenced by traditions, social media and politics.
Cover from the concept-design.
I began my project by researching Generation Theory, which examines the influence of history on different generations. Generation Theory emerged in the United States in the 1990s. This theory supposes that events within American (and all of Western) history are cyclical, so that the behavioural patterns of different generations correspond to each other. In the post-Soviet countries, however, history was different, so the characteristics of generations also differ.
My interest in Generation Theory was influenced by my own family history. My parents moved from Russia to the Netherlands in 2009. I grew up in Amsterdam, but was surrounded by my family's Soviet mentality and traditions. From an early age, I started documenting the differences of these two countries with my camera to understand why I did not feel myself fully at home with either country.
I was looking for an escape on the internet and because of this, I felt myself strongly connected to Generation Z, which is what my research is about.
Generation Z is the youngest generation from the Generation Theory. This is the first generation born and raised in a digital environment. We know how to use smartphones from an early age and cannot imagine a world without the internet. It is interesting to compare Generation Z with the Silent Generation, the generation whose teenage years took place at the end of World War II. According to the theory, there are many similarities between these two generations, especially in the way they receive information: great-grandparents got their knowledge and emotions from books in childhood, Gen Z also prefers the virtual world to the real one. Of course, the medium has changed YouTube and Netflix have replaced books. But the essence is similar: replacing the lived experience with the experience of text or video writers. The reason for the loneliness of the gadget generation is the prevalence of digital communication and the underdevelopment of personal communication skills. In reality, we find it difficult to read body language, listen, and apply empathy and intuition. Therefore, fearing trouble and discomfort, many of us avoid real life and spend more and more time on social media.
In 2021, I made my first major photography trip across Russia. I contacted teenagers in small towns through social media and spent days (and sometimes weeks) with them. I documented their lives and surroundings with my camera. Took notes and wrote down their stories. My project was interrupted by the Russian invasion in Ukraine in 2022. I decided to include the change within my research and continued to visit my protagonists regularly.
Travelling and making images in a country like Russia became increasingly difficult, each time I didn't know if I would be able to return to the Netherlands again, as the country was closing itself off more and more from the rest of the world.
By the end of 2023, I had built up a collection of stories of youngsters in Eastern Europe, recording how their lives and choices are affected by political decisions in their countries. Without realising it, I created a time document of my own. In it, I record how a free country closes itself off from the world within a short time and how its inhabitants try to adapt to the changes.
I would like to share their stories with the rest of the world through a publication of this project.
Scans from the first book dummy (2021).
For me, a publication would conclude my research. It is important to write down and document recent history. When people think of the word 'war', they often think of weapons and devastation, however, war also has indirect consequences that will influence the mentality of subsequent generations in the coming decades.
The indirect effects are not always visible, but are of long-lasting influence. This was so with the Soviet Union, with a culture of fear persisting among residents of post-Soviet countries. Will this remain so with young people growing up in modern Russia?
During my research, I recorded the protagonists I spoke to and stayed with, sharing their stories directly on my social media channels and involving people on the other side of the world. The publication of Control Refresh means not only a documentation of young people's stories influenced by their immediate environment, but also a recording of their development process within the social media they use. In this, they are heard and understood by young people from other countries and cultures.
With this book, I would like to show how youngsters in Russia grow up between the influences of traditions and Western media and highlight how the war indirectly affected the lives of citizens in Russia. I want to show the reality of teenagers in this country, which is little talked about.
Videos from my trips to Russia.
Over the years, I was able to publish excerpts of my work in journalistic form several times, and realized exhibitions with it. Yet, I increasingly felt that these formats did not fully do justice to the complexity of the subject. With the book publication, I wanted to go into more depth, making it possible to understand how the different aspects of the story are related.
Fist solo-exhibition, C-LAB in Amsterdam, the Netherlands (2022).
The resulting book is being designed by Rob van Hoesel and set to be published by The Eriskay Connection in September 2024. It will be a 23 x 32 cm softcover (textile!), bilingual - English and (online translation) Russian book.
Luckily, the publication is funded by Jaap Harten Fund, but a part of the budget is still missing. To cover the costs for production, design, text editing and lithography, I need your help and I'm grateful for every contribution that you can make. I'm so excited to finally publish this work in book form and to share it with you!
Note: the layout is not final and there will be some changes until the publication.
It will be printed by Wilco Art Books in Utrecht, a printer well known for producing exceptional quality photobooks. The lithography will be done by Marc Gijzen.
The technical specifications of the book:
- 160 Pages
- 230 x 320 mm
- 800 Books
- Retail price €35
Rob van Hoesel and me, holding the book dummy (2024).
The title Control Refresh, also known as Ctrl+R, is a shortcut key used to refresh the page in an internet browser. In addition, the word 'Control' refers to politics and older generations, and 'Refresh' thus to the young, new generation.
The book is divided into 3 chapters, covering 3 years, 2021-2023. Indeed, each year of my research can be defined quite specifically by social developments:
2021: Post-covid. The year after the corona pandemic, which was then behind us, and a lot of societal freedom reopened. Young people had struggled with the restrictions during the pandemic and in 2021, everything opened up again. This chapter was characterised by lightness, and relaxation.
2022: The war. In February 2022, the war began, a lot of uncertainty arose among young people. They were afraid of mobilisation, they were afraid to speak out and there was an economic crisis as companies pulled out of Russia. Everything became much more illegal and there was a lot of escapism among teenagers.
2023: Life goes on. The fear has remained and in many ways it affects young people's daily lives: websites and social media are out of reach, they become disconnected from the world, rules become stricter and there is a lot of fear of being caught for no reason. Yet they try to repackage their lives as best they can. There is a strong focus on studies, work and family life.
In the book there is a timeline describing the geopolitical developments affecting the lives of the youngsters.
The slightly anarchistic behaviour and liveliness of the teens are enhanced in the book by a dynamic use of images on the pages. All typography is printed in red ink. The book is printed on a woody, newspaper-like paper to enhance the analogue character, but also to give the book a certain roughness. The cover is cut at an angle to express the tipping point of time but also the playfulness of the young people in the book.
