Francoise Huguier - Kommounalki

I came across Francoise Huguier's book, Kommounalki which presents images taken while renting a room in a communal apartment (Kommunalka in Russian) in Saint Petersburg. This book, with French texts, is a rarity, which you can purchase for only £20.

In her own words:

My very first days in these communal apartments in St Petersburg were absolutely perplexing, and I realised it would take me several stays and an inside contact to get to the bottom of these weird, closed-off environments.

Over several years I photographed the place and the daily life of the residents – and especially of Natacha, who set the rhythm of my visits. Implicitly, and without my realising it, she became the main strand in my narrative and in my desire to be there and stay there. She embodies the quintessence of these communal worlds and the magnetism of a city that has been gnawing at me for so many years. How many times have I stood simply hypnotised by these disturbing visions of light and shade?

Who spoke to me of ghosts? Who told me that at night in St Petersburg you can see the invisible and dream of the unutterable

Listen to an audio interview