Sofiya Loriashvili doesn’t just capture images; she immortalizes the unspoken. The ache of recovery, the weight of war, and the beauty found in chaos. Her lens chronicles a life marked by extremes: fighting addiction, depression, navigating medical institutions, and carrying the legacy of her Ukrainian roots amidst turmoil. With My Book, her latest release, Sofiya opens an intimate window into 7 years of unfiltered moments. Raw portraits of friends, artists, fractured love, and fleeting euphoria. Each image blurs the line between personal confession and universal truth, cementing her as a daring voices in contemporary photography, constantly pushing the boundaries.

This conversation peels back the layers of her artistry, exploring the stories behind her images and the resilience that fuels them.

YOUR PHOTOGRAPHS OFTEN FEEL LIKE A MIRROR TURNED INWARD, REFLECTING NOT JUST YOUR SUBJECTS BUT YOURSELF. DO YOU SEE YOUR WORK AS A FORM OF SELF-PORTRAITURE, EVEN WHEN YOU ARE NOT IN THE FRAME? 

I start from myself and my own experience to talk about general subject. But I think we all do this. 

DOES ART FOR YOU COME FROM SURVIVAL, CELEBRATION, OR THE TENSION BETWEEN THE TWO?

It’s a necessity.

WHO OR WHAT IS YOUR MUSE, AND HOW DOES IT CHANGE WITH TIME?

Places, I’ve always been inspired by places and objects. Places have way more soul than humans. My father is an architect, I think it comes from that.

CAN YOU SHARE A MEMORY FROM YOUR CHILDHOOD IN UKRAINE THAT YOU FEEL ECHOES THROUGH YOUR ART TODAY? 

When I was very young my father told me that everything that I’ll do through my teenage life would be shit. I’ve never forgot his words. I have no opinion if it’s right or wrong but someone I think it shaped the way I create.

MANY ARTISTS USE THEIR PAST AS A FOUNDATION TO CREATE. DO YOU FEEL YOUR ART HAS HELPED YOU PROCESS YOUR PAST, OR DOES IT COMPLICATE YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH IT?

I love being nostalgic, I embrace my past a lot. Sometimes it makes me feel sick, but I have no regrets.

YOUR IMAGES PROVOKE SUCH STRONG EMOTIONS AND FEEL AS THOUGH THEY’VE BEEN PLUCKED FROM MOMENTS OF CHAOS AND STILLNESS ALIKE. HOW DO YOU CAPTURE THAT TENSION SO NATURALLY?

I think this is the definition of photography. To stop a moment.

How would you summarize it in 3 words?
Love, sex, death

Sofiya launched a crowdfunding campaign for the next installment in her series. Information on how to contribute is available on her website and fundraiser page. Proceeds from the upcoming book will be directed to organizations aiding those impacted by the ongoing war in Ukraine.