In this project, I aim to find a visual language to overcome the fear and revulsion that viewers experience at first sight of the alarming scars in my photographs, and compel them to look beyond the scars, beyond the fear - into the depths of my work and my wonderful heroine. And to see beauty there.

In my diptychs, alongside Marina's rough, burnt skin, her deformed figure - there are rough, crooked, imperfect branches, leaves, rocks of the lakes and forests of Massachusetts, the land that accepted us both, me and Marina, when we needed it most. There is nothing perfect, smooth, or flawless in nature. And therein lies its beauty. And in the rhyme of forms, colors, lines of both images, the viewer begins to recognize the beauty of Marina, which differs from conventional ideals.
Because (quoting Marina's words) "diversity is important, because without it, everyone is isolated. Without diversity, kids grow up seeing the reflections of other people’s reactions to them, rather than who they really are. Without diversity, society grows up not knowing how to react to and appreciate the “different” people around them."

I believe that the less diversity people see in everyday life, the more it unsettles them, and this is something I can change. As a photographer, I have the opportunity to show how beautiful differences are and to try to shift society even slightly towards a more open, diverse, and inclusive community of people.

Through my portraits, I want to give people who are different from the standard for various reasons the chance to breathe more freely and to show others that beauty is diverse.

A little about my heroine.
A girl who experienced a personal catastrophe at a still unconscious age, who almost doesn't remember herself looking like an average person, who has undergone over 60 surgeries and had to stay in the hospital several times a year. A girl who daily faces the question from strangers, "What's wrong with your face?" And this girl hasn't locked herself away, cursing her fate and fearing to go outside, quite the opposite! Marina found the strength and courage to become a model, to run a blog where she shares her personal stories about inclusion and diversity, and to help burn survivors around the world. And she thrives beyond the scars, pain, and insults.

"I became a model because I enjoy being in front of the camera, and I believe that there is beauty in every person, no matter what they have been through. In every form, in every scar, there is a story of that person's life, and I find that incredibly beautiful. Despite life's difficulties and differences in appearance, just like playing the violin, the most challenging (and sometimes painful) moments in life are necessary to achieve something absolutely magical and wonderful.

I try to inspire those around me to embrace the life. To change the way media has portrayed scars in the past, to shed the image of a burn survivor on the screen being the antagonist, and to touch the lives of many in a positive, uplifting, empowering way. And through all this, continue helping burn survivors and their families through Fenix Family Fund."