"To Russia with Love / К России с любовью" portrays fictionalized versions of gay and lesbian Russian historical figures with their respective partners. Each tableau represents a carefully crafted image in the fashion of early 20th-century couple's photography.TRWL Project was born in 2014 out of the moral imperative to stand against institutionalized homophobia and the ruthless violence in Russia towards the LGBTQ community. 

To Russia With Love portrays iconic and influential gay and lesbian figures from Russia's history, tracing a line from the 19th century to the present. These iconic figures made Russian culture celebrated worldwide: composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky, groundbreaking dancer Vaslav Nijinsky and founder of the Russian Ballets in Paris Sergei Diaghilev, and the feminist couple Maria Feodorova and Anna Yevreinova. Two fictional modern couples are added: a modern-day lesbian couple of a Russian female riot police officer and an Olympic athlete; and lastly, a homosexual male couple impersonating Joseph Stalin and Vladimir Putin to expose their roles as two of the most influential modern figures in the violation of LGBTQ human rights and the endorsement of violence towards these communities. 

Even though there was thorough research on each of the figures and the project is carefully crafted with Russian cultural references (Russian Romanticism, fashion, religious iconography and architecture), TRWL is not an accurate historical reconstruction. Purposefully created to include anachronisms that question the longevity of a discourse that has scapegoated queer identities as a source of misfortune for Russian society. As in many other societies through time, homosexuality has been equated to depravity and pedophilia, and it is often cited as a product of Western culture.  

“Denial and obliteration have always been a weapon of choice for stagnant inhumane autocracies. To Russia With Love exposes and educates, transmits and transforms, constructs and reconstructs key queer heroes of the Russian history through an astute and visually captivating mise en scène. If knowledge is power, then the acknowledgment of Russia’s queer history may bring about a change in people’s minds, their minds remaining a primary target where power always aims.”

— Ivan Savvine, Russian Writer and Art Historian

In the Russian historical narrative, their homosexual identities have been purposefully erased. This erasure has been an evident source of suffering and mental illness for these characters and many others. In Tchaikovsky's case, his struggle to repress his identity to remain a successful composer is well documented in his letter to his brother Modeste, who also happened to be gay. It is a struggle that, by many accounts, cost him his happiness and, ultimately, his life. 

In the case of Nijinsky, it is all the more complicated to have a clear view of his sexual identity since he was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the early age of 29. His personal accounts on his relationship with Diaghilev are often coloured by his mental illness exacerbated by the pressure to conform to heterosexuality. Despite his destructive behaviour, Diaghilev remained constant support throughout Nijinsky's life.

Another example is the story of the exceptional lawyer and activist Anna Yevreinova. The family tried to arrange Anna's marriage against her will forcing her to attempted suicide. Anna in response flees to Leipzig to enroll in University despite her family’s objections.

TRWL Project creates a space for these identities to develop in an imaginary safe space portrayed in the tradition of couple's photographs from the early 20th century.The images celebrate these identities by putting them at the forefront. They appear as possible sources of care, happiness, mental health, and inspiration negated to these characters in their lifetime.

Photographing each of the couples on the same studio set exposes the fact that the morals around queer identities and relationships evolve, but Russia remains the same. To Russia With Love Project seeks to create conversations around the erosion of LGBT rights in Russia with a compassionate and positive perspective.