In the war, he was looking for the world

In Moscow, the photo exhibition Kirill Radchenko, one of the three journalists who died in the Tsar, opened

He is the youngest of them: at the time of death, Cyril turned 33. That business trip was far from the first for him. In 2016–2018, he worked as an operator in Anna News, an agency specializing in hot spots reports. From these trips there are many videos and thousands of photos.

The Syrian hall of the exhibition is amazing. I saw a lot of military photo reports, and they are all very terrible: blood, ruins, distorted by pain. And in the photo of Cyril, it is not scary to watch at all - everyone smiles at him. The children in Aleppo, who were left without water, smiles, a militant with a brutal tattoo on his forehead smiles, even grandmothers smile at, sitting at the threshold of their house, destroyed by shelling. And this is on the forefront, in the thick of the fighting. In the war, he was looking for peace, not victory and defeat.

Colleague and friend Kirill Alexander Kharchenko told me: “It was really dangerous there. Once, a suicide bomber rushed from the desert in a car, drove past us and exploded a little further. And on the last business trip, the unit with which we walked took the prisoner. The guy was seriously wounded, but alive. The Syrians decided for a long time what to do with it. As a result, they left to die. After that, Cyril left. ”

One of the most expressive pictures at the exhibition was taken not by Cyril, but by his colleague. In the photo of Radchenko surrounded by Syrian children, they are from five to nine years old. In addition to the war, they did not see anything in their lives. He squatted down and shows them a quadrocopter. A smiling guy in camouflage. Children are happy, they think this is a toy, a toy aircraft.

“Was Cyril a sociable man?”

- He was a thoughtful person. I thought more than he said. He looked, tried to understand.

In Moscow, he did not stop shooting. He shot city landscapes, people, rallies, protests of 2012 and later. The latest entries on the Cyril page in VKontakte - about the case of May 5, about garbage riots, about the case of the network ( organias recognized as terrorist in Russia - ed. ). He was worried. But even at rallies, he shot not speakers, but kissing people in the crowd and children sitting on the shoulders of the fathers. He had such a look.

Father Radchenko tells about the origin of the Israeli series of photographs, Alexander: “Mom on his birthday bought him a ticket“ All inclusive ”. But Cyril could not. He threw things in the room and traveled around the country for two weeks, shot. Dear hotel, restaurant, and he waved his hand and left. I really like the photo "legs" from that trip. He took off the legs of people who came to the wall of crying. Only legs, without faces. It turned out expressively. "

"Neighbors" - this is the name of this exhibition. At the presentation, we were shown a video: Cyril and friends, Cyril in the city, Cyril at work. At some point, he says: "I want there are no borders, so that people come to visit each other like neighbors." And smiles. So did not think those who killed him in Africa, Rastorguev and Jemal. But Cyril will win anyway.

Music plays in the hall, “The Last Hero” “Kino”: “In the morning you strive to leave faster, a phone call as a team - go ahead!” Suitable song for him.

The exhibition of photographs of Kirill Radchenko is open until April 29 at the address: Comrade Lane, 4, p. 5