Sasha Velichko Wins Photo Essay Award at the European Month of Photography in Tokyo
Sasha Velichko Wins Photo Essay Award at the European Month of Photography in Tokyo
News | 31.10.2025
This year marks the first-ever European Month of Photography held in Japan, featuring 14 artists from 12 countries. Among them, on the exhibition platforms, is the winner of the open call The SEEEU Photo Essay Award — the project “State of Denial” by Belarusian artist Sasha Velichko.
This year marks the first-ever European Month of Photography held in Japan, featuring 14 artists from 12 countries. Among them, on the exhibition platforms, is the winner of the open call The SEEEU Photo Essay Award — the project “State of Denial” by Belarusian artist Sasha Velichko.
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The SEEEU Photo Essay Award is a part of the overall festival, open to photographers from all over the world. The award seeks photographic projects in which images and text together tell stories that encourage reflection on contemporary European life — its people, struggles, and transformations. This year, three winners were selected, with the main prize going to Sasha Velichko. She was also invited to participate in the European Month of Photography in Japan and to present her project in Tokyo.
The SEEEU Photo Essay Award is a part of the overall festival, open to photographers from all over the world. The award seeks photographic projects in which images and text together tell stories that encourage reflection on contemporary European life — its people, struggles, and transformations. This year, three winners were selected, with the main prize going to Sasha Velichko. She was also invited to participate in the European Month of Photography in Japan and to present her project in Tokyo.
Sasha Velichko at the opening of the "State of Denial" project exhibition in Tokyo / photo from the creator's personal Instagram / 2025.
Velichko’s project “State of Denial” explores how individuals exist within a digital reality saturated with fake news, deepfakes, and state manipulation. The project consists of two parts.
The first features staged photographs based on real stories of arrests and court trials in Belarus. The scenes are reconstructed with elements of grotesque and theatrical absurdity, echoing the nature of the trials themselves. The second part consists of images generated by neural networks, based on real headlines from Belarusian state media published on the days of specific arrests. The artist confronts the viewer with the senseless informational noise in which reality is replaced by absurdity.
Velichko’s project “State of Denial” explores how individuals exist within a digital reality saturated with fake news, deepfakes, and state manipulation. The project consists of two parts.
The first features staged photographs based on real stories of arrests and court trials in Belarus. The scenes are reconstructed with elements of grotesque and theatrical absurdity, echoing the nature of the trials themselves. The second part consists of images generated by neural networks, based on real headlines from Belarusian state media published on the days of specific arrests. The artist confronts the viewer with the senseless informational noise in which reality is replaced by absurdity.
Photos from the project "State of Denial" by Sasha Velichko / images taken from The SEEEU Photo Essay Award / 2025.
Launched in 2023, “State of Denial” has already been presented at several international venues. In 2023, Sasha Velichko became the first Belarusian artist to receive the annual Konrad Pustoła Award from Krytyka Polityczna. This year, she won the Grand Prix at Les Boutographies 2025 — one of Europe’s leading festivals of auteur photography. The Belarusian artist’s project can now be seen at Europa House (Delegation of the European Union to Japan) until November 23.
Launched in 2023, “State of Denial” has already been presented at several international venues. In 2023, Sasha Velichko became the first Belarusian artist to receive the annual Konrad Pustoła Award from Krytyka Polityczna. This year, she won the Grand Prix at Les Boutographies 2025 — one of Europe’s leading festivals of auteur photography. The Belarusian artist’s project can now be seen at Europa House (Delegation of the European Union to Japan) until November 23.
Sasha Velichko (Born in Slonim, Belarus) is an artist who examines political emigration, post-truth and trauma. She holds an MSc in radiophysics. Her collaborative and interdisciplinary artistic practice focuses on photography and computer programming. Sasha Velichko is a graduate of the Fotografika school of contemporary photography and of the Gaude Polonia scholarship programme (Poland). She is also a winner of the annual Konrad Pustoła Memorial Prize for political critique.
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Sasha Velichko (Born in Slonim, Belarus) is an artist who examines political emigration, post-truth and trauma. She holds an MSc in radiophysics. Her collaborative and interdisciplinary artistic practice focuses on photography and computer programming. Sasha Velichko is a graduate of the Fotografika school of contemporary photography and of the Gaude Polonia scholarship programme (Poland). She is also a winner of the annual Konrad Pustoła Memorial Prize for political critique.
Reprinting of the material or excerpts from the material is permitted only with the written consent of the editorial team.
If you notice an error or would like to suggest an addition to the published materials, please let us know.
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