Moving to another country is accompanied by a deep sense of alienation and the attempt to find one’s place in a new, often seemingly hostile world. Every migrant faces the feeling of being foreign and the biased gaze of others, especially in the context of the complex historical and political relations between countries.

When a person is not fully aware of how they move through life, absorbed in their thoughts, anxieties, or inner conflicts, their “path” becomes not just physical movement, but a process of self-forgetfulness. This “wandering” path has no clear direction. It is not tied to a final destination or conscious choice but is rather the result of an inner state: an escape from reality, avoiding what requires attention and awareness.

Like road hypnosis, where a driver can drive for a long time and respond adequately to external events, but later cannot remember what they did. By following the feet of people on the streets, I turned the process of photography into a personal and therapeutic practice of self-forgetfulness. The feet of passersby became images of wandering sleepwalkers in the urban space. Some of them seemed to embody people lost in the hustle and bustle, forgetting where they were going, and even ceasing to think about it.

Ultimately, the path, which appears to be movement, turns out to be part of a closed inner circle, where a person remains suspended, unable to break free.

All images ©Ivan Anisimov