The Answer Is ...

They actually all belong in the picture. Surprised? I was.

I took that picture on Saturday when a few of my friends and I went out to Kuznetsovsk (near the Polish border) to visit some friends. I thought it was the perfect picture to display one f the many paradoxes of Ukraine; in this case, a country utilizing the advance of mankind … but only to a point. They have been able to embrace and apply personal technology, but have struggled to apply technological advances to their larger infrastructure. I think it shows the unique way old and new co-exist here.

About the photograph.

When we first arrived in town the field where the lone horse and cart are now was filled to the brim with horses and their carts. It was as if everyone came from the villages for the day – and parked their carts in this pasture while they went about their business in town.

The man on the bike was what my former art teacher called a “happy accident.” I had the camera poised to take the photograph with just the horse and cart and the nuclear reactor, when all of the sudden out of the corner of my eye … I saw him coming. Of course, I waited patiently with the camera still raised until he was in my frame. As I pushed the button to take the picture, he looked right at me. Haha. My friend S and I laughed at our fortune with this picture. We could not have planned it better (maybe only if the horse had cooperated and turned to look at us as well).

And the nuclear reactor power plant. Who would really want to live near that? Especially in Ukraine after the disaster of Chernobyl. Apparently the plant was only supposed to be used for 30 years, but they are approaching 40 currently. The town of Kuznetsovsk grew out of the need for a place for plant workers to live and it is still the largest employer of residents.