23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest People
A Life Suspended in the Shadows of War

Born in Abkhazia during WWII, Dzabuli Bendeliani fled the 1992 war between Russian-backed separatists and Georgian forces. She has lived 30 years in a decaying Tskaltubo sanatorium, keeping only a doll saved during her escape.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2024
Date Uploaded: 11.2025
Photo Location: Tskaltubo, Georgia
Camera: LEICA Q2
Copyright: © Marylise Vigneau