18th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Altered Images
The Tale of the Snake and the Fish

The photo project is called "Journey of the Dead to the Living". This is my attempt to convey the magic of nature in the Russian North, the magical attitude of the peoples who have inhabited these places for a long time. This is a mystical story and a story about the former glory of Karelian sorcerers, this is a story about the originality of the peoples of the Russian North and their way of life. These are, sometimes, references to the ancient runes with which "Kalevala" is saturated, sometimes - a clear perception of the place, which speaks for itself, and I just hear and see, and sometimes - pure fantasy, coming from nowhere, so that it becomes incomprehensible fantasy or not. I want to take you to the Karelian forest, inhabited by spirits and souls, in order to catch the invisible out of the corner of my eye. Look, here is the spirit of the tree. He is frightening, but take a closer look: he himself writhes in horror, because he is alive, but in captivity forever. But the soul of a sorcerer, enclosed in a seid, the sorcerer was a light magician, protected the whole village, so he could choose this coastal peace for himself ... An absurd revived petroglyph. He seems to be trying to warn about something, but I don't understand ...

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 04.2020
Date Uploaded: 11.2020
Photo Location: Priozersky district of the Leningrad region, Russia
Camera: EZ Controller
Copyright: © Mariya Chechulina