Men in Moscow

This is a story about gender roles. Moscow is a city in which, typically, men and women implicitly understand and perform their gendered roles, perhaps unquestioningly, and perhaps with a great deal to recommend it. As a foreigner, it is my duty to observe, to be perplexed even, to not offer judgment, but to see if I can cast some light on a topic. I find myself drawn to the patterns of behaviour that surround me in the city. I wonder: are the men content to be so masculine, the women so feminine. What problems do such delineated, separated identities provoke and what advantages do they find within these known, comprehendable boundaries? I am interested in exploring the extent to which questions like this can be honestly and openly investigated with a camera. I have often turned my camera towards the women: elegant, tenacious, stylish in a classical way I am not quite familiar with. There is something admirable, enigmatic in their manner. But here I wish to look at the men. What can I learn from their style, their work, their body language, all seemingly so remote from the female realm. I hope the photos reveal something of life in this fascinating, compex city.