The photos were first shown during "Witnessing the Now" sociological conference, on 24.02.2023 at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw.
The Station
Soon after 24 February 2022, when the new phase of the Russian invasion of Ukraine started, an urgent reception of warzone refugees began in my home city, Warsaw. It was led and executed almost exclusively by random volunteer citizens, with little involvement from government institutions and established NGOs. Some of the volunteers came from as far as North America and South Asia. Many of them were Ukrainians, working in Poland before 2022. Some were refugees themselves, who arrived to Poland just a few days prior. I took the images from February to April 2022 at the Warsaw Central Railway Station. As the key point of arrival, it became the main hub of the volunteer efforts. It is also the station from which I happen to commute for work weekly. For several reasons, I soon focused on the volunteers. However, a few pictures of people fleeing from war are left in this report.