Location: Oslo S, airport express terminal

At Oslo S, art offers a lens into the war in Ukraine. From 2017 to 2019, Ukrainian art photographer Julie Poly directed her focus toward the Ukrainian railway system, capturing the atmosphere, personalities, and lives unfolding inside the train carriages.

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This event transformed what it means to travel by train in the country. Poly returned to capture new images reflecting this shift.

“Ukrzaliznytsia 2017–2025” presents a selection of Poly’s photographs from before and after the invasion. The exhibition portrays a diverse array of travellers: young people, families, soldiers, farewells, and reunions. Some images speak of the harsh realities of war. Others turn the simple act of sitting shoulder to shoulder with a stranger in a train compartment into a metaphor for a broader sense of European solidarity.

Curator/producer: Mesén
Client: Bane NOR Eiendom