In Search of Anna (2021)

“In Search of Anna” is a visual investigation into the life of Anna Pirogova, the real-life prototype of Anna Karenina.

In Yasnaya Polyana, the Tolstoy family estate, I discovered that the tragic ending of the world-famous novel was not fictional. Anna Pirogova, a housekeeper and the lover of the landowner Alexander Bibikov (a neighbor of the Tolstoys), could not bear his betrayal and threw herself under a train. This story deeply struck the writer, who rewrote the ending of the novel, giving the main character the name Anna and the image of the train turned into a symbol of inevitable fate.

Anna Karenina had other prototypes as well—prominent ladies of her time whose portraits are easily found in open archives. Yet, the image of Anna Pirogova has been erased from history: no portraits of her exist. The image of Anna Karenina has been reproduced and reinterpreted countless times through dozens of film adaptations, theatrical performances, and musicals. While the literary heroine achieved immortality, the real woman was consumed by the myth.

Referring to the diaries and letters of Sophia Andreyevna Tolstaya, I reconstruct the events of that fateful day. Through photography, both found and created, I explore the boundary between a human being and her literary shadow, questioning the very possibility of separating the real woman from the fictional character. The portrait that never existed stands as an imprint of this impossibility. It leaves us with an image that is inevitably a hybrid of fact and fiction.