St Bartholomew Flayed
Marco d’Agrate
This haunting statue of Saint Bartholomew (1562) shows the martyr after being skinned alive, wearing his own flayed skin like a cloak. The anatomical precision reveals a Renaissance fascination with the human body, while the calm expression evokes spiritual endurance beyond physical torment.
The Wedding Banquet of Cupid and Psyche
Raphael
In this grand fresco (1518), Raphael depicts the divine banquet celebrating the marriage of Cupid and Psyche. At the center, Jupiter and Juno preside; beside them sit Pluto, Persephone, Neptune, and Venus. Ganymede offers wine to Jupiter, while Bacchus (Dionysus), assisted by putti, pours wine at the right. The scene embodies divine harmony, joy, and the union of soul and love.
Musical Angels (detail)
Pinturicchio
In this detail (1484–86), Pinturicchio paints two angelic musicians, one playing a violin and the other a wind instrument. Floating on clouds, they contribute to the celestial harmony surrounding Christ in Majesty. The graceful movement of their garments reflects Pinturicchio’s refined sense of rhythm, light, and divine celebration.
The Infant Jesus with a Lamb
Bernardino Luini
This oil and tempera on panel (c. 1525) captures the tenderness of the Infant Jesus, or Gesu Bambino, embracing a lamb—a symbol of his future sacrifice as the Lamb of God. Luini’s High Renaissance style blends divine purity and human innocence, creating a serene image of spiritual love and redemptive foreshadowing.
Grotesque Ceiling Decoration
Bonaccorsi Pietro (Perin del Vaga) and Rietti Domenico
This fresco (c. 16th c.) blends Renaissance whimsy with ancient Roman influence, reviving the grotesque style unearthed in Nero’s Domus Aurea. Figures with human and animal features balance symmetrical vines, mythical beasts, and theatrical masks. The composition celebrates harmony through fantasy, playfully bridging antiquity and imagination.
Apollo and Daphne (detail)
Gian Lorenzo Bernini
In this electrifying detail from Apollo and Daphne (1622–25), Daphne’s transformation peaks: her fingers stretch skyward as they fracture into laurel branches. Bernini’s carving achieves an uncanny fluidity—Apollo’s embrace contrasts her fleeing limbs, while bark and hair blur into motion, embodying divine metamorphosis and tragic escape.
Painted Orthopedic Corset
Frida Kahlo
This hand-painted leather corset (c.1944), worn by Frida Kahlo, illustrates both her physical suffering and creative defiance. After spinal injuries and repeated surgeries, Kahlo turned orthopedic braces into canvases, inscribing them with personal symbols. She transformed medical necessity into art, merging pain, identity, and resilience.
Perseus and Medusa
Baldassarre Peruzzi
In this fresco (c. 1511), Peruzzi depicts Perseus about to behead Medusa. Medusa’s petrifying gaze has already turned victims to stone, visible as pale figures below. Pegasus, born from Medusa’s blood, emerges nearby, symbolizing rebirth. The scene reflects triumph over monstrous chaos.
The Prayer
Einar Jónsson
Created in 1909 and later cast in bronze, this sculpture shows a kneeling woman embracing a praying child, merging maternal love with spiritual devotion. Jónsson, pioneer of Icelandic sculpture, wove Nordic symbolism into works that joined earthly care and divine aspiration. His 1909 donation of all his art to the nation ensured the founding of Iceland’s first art museum in 1923, making pieces like The Prayer central to national identity.
Apollo and Daphne with The Apotheosis of Romulus
Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Mariano Rossi
Bernini’s sculpture (1622–25) captures the climactic moment in Ovid’s Metamorphoses when the nymph Daphne, fleeing Apollo’s desire, transforms into a laurel tree. Above, Rossi’s Apotheosis of Romulus celebrates Rome’s divine origins. Romulus ascends, clutching Roma—helmeted symbol of the eternal city—while Fame, winged and bearing a trumpet, heralds his glory with laurel crowns. Together, sculpture and fresco exalt mythic transformation and Rome’s enduring legacy.
The Dog Men (Coprophagia)
Luis Alberto Acuña
This disturbing drawing (1988) shows three gaunt hybrid figures with human torsos and doglike heads crouched on all fours. Part of Acuña’s late series on distorted bodies, it examines the boundary between human and animal. The title refers to coprophagia (the consumption of excrement), which Acuña uses to articulate a vision of moral collapse and social dehumanization.
Judith Beheading Holofernes
Caravaggio
This canvas (c. 1599) painted in Rome embodies Caravaggio’s radical realism and theatrical chiaroscuro. Judith, a young widow, slays the Assyrian general Holofernes to save her people. Her calm determination contrasts with his violent death and the maid’s aged pragmatism. By staging sacred violence with unflinching naturalism, Caravaggio redefined biblical painting as a drama of human courage and divine justice.
El pueblo en lucha
Ramón Oviedo
This mural (2013) shows a bound, faceless figure hurling itself toward the dark mouths of cannons, while ghostly soldiers and crowds emerge in the background. The scene recalls the Dominican struggle against dictatorship and foreign intervention in the 20th c. By fusing a single straining body with collective, blurred forms, Oviedo concentrates individual sacrifice into a broader history of resistance.
Rest on the Flight to Egypt
Jacopo Bassano
In this luminous canvas (c. 1547), Bassano blends biblical narrative with rustic realism. The Holy Family, joined by shepherds and animals, pauses under a tree. The tender gesture of the Child reaching for Joseph evokes familial warmth amid hardship, while the detailed pastoral setting links divine history to everyday Venetian life.
The Tree of Vowels
Giuseppe Penone
This monumental bronze sculpture (2000) shows a fallen oak with roots extending like veins across the ground. Installed in the Jardin des Tuileries, it demonstrates Penone’s exploration of the connection between humanity and nature. The work combines organic memory with sculptural permanence, inviting reflection on time, fragility, and the endurance of natural forms.
“When the path is beautiful, do not ask where it leads.” — Zen proverb
Welcome to my travel photography!
“When the path is beautiful, do not ask where it leads.” — Zen proverb
Welcome to my travel photography!
For as long as I can remember, my path has been one of discovery—seeking beauty, timelessness, and connection in every corner of the world. It has also been a journey of deep learning and understanding. I’ve been an avid traveler (or perhaps a travel addict?) for most of my life. My love for travel began long before I ever left home: as a child, I drew a fantasy map of my grandparents’ apartment and “traveled” through it with my cousin Sonya, imagining adventures in every corner. Nearly 90 countries and countless moments of awe later, I’m excited to share this journey with you.
Thanks to the tireless and ingenious programming of Diagilev, we’re now able to present about fifteen percent of the images I’ve accumulated over the years. More will be released in small batches depending on your interest. While the first release leans toward museum photography, later ones will include more nature, architecture, culture, and general travel experiences. If you’d like to receive email notifications about new releases, feel free to reach out—no commercial use, ever.
Throughout my travels, I’ve been drawn to two intertwined kinds of discovery. One is intellectual: learning why the world is the way it is. History became my guide, shaping my perspective and filling my camera roll with museums and old buildings. To me, history is not the past—it is the key to understanding the present and how the world became what it is. The other is emotional: seeking moments of elevation—spirituality, beauty, harmony—often found in nature, monasteries, and ancient sacred spaces. Together, these impulses shape my photography. It invites you to learn, admire, and soar—to rise above the mundane and see the world through a lens of curiosity and wonder.
Much of my later travel became possible thanks to my job with Delta Air Lines, but the wanderlust began years earlier. By the time I joined the industry, I had already visited over 35 countries and lived in several—largely thanks to a backpacking journey around the world with Luis León, whose face appears in many early photos. I grew up in Ufa in the USSR, and since leaving it I have lived, studied, and worked in Latvia, the United States, France, South Korea, Canada, Spain, Italy, Brazil, Japan, and Colombia.
A life of near-constant movement may seem a little crazy, but it has deepened my understanding of the world and produced the photography you are about to see. Over the years, my style has evolved—more intentional, more refined—yet its core remains the same: a search for understanding, timeless beauty, and a connection to those who walked this earth long before us.
I hope these photos stir something in your soul, just as they did in mine. I’d love to hear from you—whether reactions, suggestions, corrections, or a request to be added to the email list for new releases (no commercial use, I promise). You can learn more about my travels here, and my academic life here.
Enjoy our shared journey!