Abuse of power

There is no separate article on torture in the Russian Criminal Code, there is only an article on abuse of power — Article 286. It has a paragraph on torture, the punishment is up to 15 years of imprisonment. However, according to the data of the human rights organisation “Crew Against Torture” for 2019, the average term of imprisonment under this article is 3.5 years, 43% of those convicted receive only suspended sentences. The system protects its individual representatives. And people who have been in the role of suspects or accused continue to tell stories about how they were persuaded to give the “right” testimony.

My photographs are staged shots of ordinary objects placed in everyday conditions. According to the stories of victims of police brutality and materials of criminal cases, similar objects to those depicted were used for torture.