Winter is coming: The one and only Russian season

Russian photographer Ekaterina Vasilyeva made a photo series about Russian winter called Russian Season.

Although the calendar shows the first day of winter, central Russia has been under snow for a month and a half already. People have been skiing, skating, and suffering from frost and wind. The cold season will last longer than three months: only in April will spring reemerge.

In northern Russia the snow will disappear only in summer; in some places, it is permanent (in Yakutia or Chukotka).

Russian Season is a project about Russian cold weather that goes all around the globe.

Russian winter is what fairytales are made of. It’s love at first sight. This is the most adventurous time of the year for making enriching cultural discoveries and creating memories to last a lifetime.

“Certain illustrations in the series evoke fairy tales and folklore. I feel a connection with the sense of abandonment, mystery, and aesthetics of the snow-covered Russia,” says Ekaterina, the author of the photos.

The name of the photo project by Ekaterina Vasilyeva refers to the popular stereotype that winter is the only season in Russia (not true, of course).

“Winter decorates our country as perhaps no any other season. Countless tons of debris and road wells, bad smells and bad moods disappear under the snow.”

Winter in Russia is a time of long dark days and nights, icy roads, and harsh weather. “For me, it's also a kind of challenge to create the perfect image of winter,” says Ekaterina Vasilyeva.

“The political, spiritual, and cultural life of Russia is described in climatic terms such as cooling, freezing, and thawing. Love of winter is part of the national character: dreaming, reflection, detachment.”