In the first part of the evening, we talked about the challenges that photographers, the media and we as viewers face when it comes to images of war and conflict. In our panel discussion, Ukrainian photographer Julia Kochetova and OSTKREUZ photographer Sebastian Wells (Soлomiya Magazine) provided insights into their work. The discussion was moderated by Tobias Laukemper.

Julia Kochetova is a photojournalist and documentary filmmaker based in Kyiv, Ukraine. She studied journalism at the Taras Shevchenko National University (UA) and the Mohyla School of Journalism (UA), as well as taking part in the IDFA Academy (NL). She covered the Maidan revolution (2013-2014), the annexation of Crimea (2014) and the Russian-Ukrainian war (2014-present). Her work from the conflict zone has been presented in exhibitions in UK, USA, France, Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Serbia, Portugal and Ukraine and has been published by Vice News, Der Spiegel, Zeit, Bloomberg, Vanity Fair, The Guardian, FP, Reuters, NBC. kochetova.rocks

Sebastian Wells lives in Berlin and has been a member of the OSTKREUZ agency since 2019. He studied photography at the Ostkreuzschule Berlin, the University of Applied Sciences Bielefeld and the KASK in Ghent and works as a photographer for newspapers and magazines such as Stern, Süddeutsche Zeitung, 11Freunde oder Neue Zürcher Zeitung. In 2022 he founded the Soлomiya Magazine together with Vsevolod Kazarin. sebastianwells.de solomiyamag.com

Tobias Laukemper is an independent photo editor, curator and lecturer. He worked for publications such as DIE ZEIT, NZZ am Sonntag, brand eins and GEO. From 2014-2020 he was co-director of FOTOTREFF Berlin, where he held numerous photographic talks and portfolio reviews. https://www.bild-und-struktur.com/