Cover image of "In(visible) City" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), a Exhibitions, based in Sumy, created in 30.01.2025

"In(visible) City"

Sumy 2021

This city can be seen every day, but not noticed.

It consists of shadows, reflections, and silence, of presence that seems like absence. Its inhabitants are people who exist in the gaps between rush, advertising, expectations. This city is about loneliness in the crowd, about living on the edge of attention, about those who disappear in space, although their stories sound louder than it seems.

This series is an attempt to stop and look more closely. Because it is worth changing the perspective - and the invisible becomes visible.


Curator: Hanna Shvyndina

Project "(In)visible City" is an attempt to capture what often goes unnoticed in everyday life, hidden in the shadows of urban routines. Through the camera lens, I aimed to convey the difficult states we sometimes find ourselves in, or even live in, unable to always share them with others. Reflections in puddles, distorted images in glass - these are symbols of how reality can become unfamiliar, heavy, and blurred.

Loneliness, invisibility in the crowd, disability, poverty, bullying, old age - these themes become part of the urban landscape, and although they are hard to see, they are around us every day. People living in these states often remain unnoticed, hidden from view, but their images are reflected in puddles, glass, creating new, distorted realities.

This project is an attempt to draw attention to what remains in the shadows, to what we often do not want or cannot see, to the people who become part of the city but remain invisible to those around them. Reflections in puddles and glass are like symbols of the fact that what is important and painful is not always visible, but is part of our world.


Video: https://youtube.com/shorts/coLrkqFVv7A



Image of "Between loneliness and tranquility, between changes, losses and memory" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, 1/20 print run, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Between loneliness and tranquility, between changes, losses and memory" (2021)

A summer woman sits in the park - amidst nature, amidst space, amidst silence.
She is barely noticeable. She looks at the place where there used to be a pond, but it is no longer there. The vanished pond as a symbol of change, loss, and memory. It's not just a place, but a trace of what was, but is no more.

Is this about loneliness or solitude? About the desire to be alone with thoughts or, on the contrary, to feel the presence of people, even without interacting with them?

Is she seeking attention or hiding from it?

Sometimes the line between these states is so thin that even the one sitting in this silence does not always know the answer. Or may have already forgotten.


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, 1/20 print run

Image of "Irony of Blindness" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Irony of Blindness" (2021)

Social advertisement about vision correction against the background of a person in need. Do we always see what is important?


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20

Image of "Expectations in a Silent City" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Expectations in a Silent City" (2021)

This photo has a special atmosphere - it's about a city that could have been different, about a space that has lost its purpose but still remains a place for someone. These awnings once protected from the sun, and now they look like remnants of another time frozen in the warmth of the sunset.

The woman in the frame - whether it's loneliness, contemplation, or anticipation. She seems to be talking to herself or to someone who is not in the frame. It's a moment when everything freezes between the past and the future.


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20

Image of "Through the glass" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, edition 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Through the glass" (2021)

Displaying mixes worlds, erases boundaries between viewers and those they do not look at.

A woman asking for alms is on the other side, but not behind glass. The glass here is conditional because in reality it is not there. There is only a gaze that does not linger. Indifference becomes a transparent barrier that distances even without physical obstacles.

The boundary between the world of those who ask and those who turn away is invisible - but strong.

 It is not only about alienation, but also about the uncertainty of the moment - about not always knowing what is really happening between people. It can be a story of estrangement, or it can be a first step towards closeness. 


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, edition 1/20

Image of "Dangerous Crossing" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, lacquer, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Dangerous Crossing" (2021)

An elderly man stands before a crossing - not just across the road. Ahead is a war monument that embodies a past saturated with propaganda, lies, pain, occupation, and death of those whose lives no one valued.

Now they have come again to kill us.

But does he see the danger in the old symbols, or is he still holding onto them? Does he understand where this path leads?

Do we realize the danger of old symbols and are we finally ready to get rid of them - both externally and in our minds?


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, lacquer, print, print 1/20

Image of "Where are you going?" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Where are you going?" (2021)


Reality breaks into parts - a person goes into infinity, while traces of life dissolve in light.

It's about moments of uncertainty when space around seems to tear apart, and you lose the sense of wholeness. When you don't know where you are heading, whether you are going in the right direction, or simply dissolving in motion.

Or, perhaps, it's the opposite - a moment of concentration. When you are so deeply immersed in yourself that the world ceases to exist around you.


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20

Image of "Solitude" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Solitude" (2021)


This photo perfectly captures the feeling of inner seclusion. Surrounded by space filled with light, greenery, open windows, yet the person inside remains detached. The solitude here is not about physical isolation, but about an internal state.

It could be a moment of concentration, immersion in oneself, or a quiet conversation with one's own thoughts. A cafe is a meeting place, but it also works just as well for being alone with oneself. Or maybe it's just a moment before a meeting?


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20

Image of "How are you?" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, impression 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"How are you?" (2021)

Her figure was caught in reflection, as if existing only there - in a distorted version of reality, where the world dissolves with water.

It's about loneliness and vulnerability, perhaps about sadness and depression. We never know what people around us feel. Is it a moment of silence and contemplation, or a plunge into darkness? Do we pay attention to the state of others, or do we get stuck in our own thoughts? Does anyone pay attention to my state?

The city is full of reflections, and in each of them - there is a story. I saw them like this.


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, impression 1/20

Image of Photo project "(In)visible city", 10 photos by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 70х50 см, made of canvas, photo, print, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $500

Photo project "(In)visible city", 10 photos (2021)


The "(In)visible City" project is an attempt to capture what often remains unnoticed in everyday life, hidden in the shadows of urban routines. Through the camera lens, I aimed to convey the harsh states in which we sometimes find ourselves, or even live, not always able to share them with others. Reflections in puddles, distorted images in glass - these are symbols of how reality can become foreign, heavy, and blurred.


Loneliness, invisibility in the crowd, disability, poverty, bullying, old age - these themes become parts of the urban landscape, and although they may not be visible, they surround us every day. People living in these states often remain unnoticed, hidden from view, but their images are reflected in puddles, glass, creating new, distorted realities.


This project is an attempt to draw attention to what remains in the shadows, to what we often do not want or cannot see, to people who become part of the city but remain invisible to others. Reflections in puddles and glass are like symbols of the fact that what is important and painful is not always visible, but is part of our world.



Curator: Hanna Shvyndina

More details on the "Project" page - "(In)visible City"


Series, 10 photos


Photo, print on canvas, varnish.
Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

70х50 см
canvas, photo, print

Image of "Reflected Silence" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"Reflected Silence" (2021)

The form blurs, but the meaning remains clear.

The one standing alone reflects in the water with others, as if a common space unites them. But is it really so? Is he a part of their world, or just its distorted reflection?

It's about alienation, about a sense of otherness that is not always easy to explain in words. Bullying can be silent – it sometimes hides in the absence of a look, in a subtle boundary that you feel even without touch.

But maybe it's a completely different story: about connection, acquaintance, and future friendship. Or just a brief encounter that will leave no trace.

The border between inclusion and alienation is as thin as water.
 

Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20

Image of "The path through the park" by Tetiana Kononenko (Tanta), size: 50х70 см, made of canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20, Photos medium, from Sumy, part of the (In)visible city series, priced at $60

"The path through the park" (2021)


A man is walking through an alley where the trees are indifferent to human limitations. And what about us?

Is our world ready for this? Is it comfortable or safe for him? Do we think about it until we face these questions personally?

We only see the road. But can a person overcome this path in a world that does not pay attention to their limitations?


Print 1/20.
Can be printed on any surface and in any size, details upon request.

50х70 см
canvas, varnish, print, print 1/20