American Photography 41 Winners

The Edge of the Earth, from Hope in the Rubble

"When I'm at the edge of the Earth, I want to feel at peace, and for no one to know where I am," Mariana said. In her mind, the edge of the Earth is filled with unicorns, ice cream, and bright colours. She also believes her friend Amira, "missing since the start of the war," is probably there. The shoot became emotional as reality set in that Amira was not actually coming back. October 2024. These images were created in Ukraine to reflect the dreams and inner worlds of children enduring the harsh realities of war. Every prop and costume is real, with magical realist worlds imagined through conversations with the children, supported by art therapists, to reveal how war has shaped their lives. The work captures their pain, their mental escape in moments of fear and loss, and the fragile hopes they hold onto while hiding in bunkers or grieving loved ones. Throughout the project creation, we endured nightly bombings and daytime air raid sirens.

Wings of Childhood, from Hope in the Rubble

"The Antonov An-225 Mriya airplane gave me pride. It was made in Ukraine and flew over Maidan," said Kostya. "When the war began, the Russians destroyed our famous airplane. I cried a lot." October 2024. Kostya imagines himself as a pilot who gets to fly it again, however, as time goes on, his dreams become "more practical, more like plans not dreams, like economics". He described becoming accustomed to air raids, and it that it is "hard for a human to realise what war is until they experience it themselves."