Black ice: a portrait of alienation in Moscow

Intense, unsmiling and at times, lost in thought. These are the expressions of the Muscovites caught on camera by Spanish photographer Salvi Danés for his project Black Ice. Walking around the Russian capital in winter, Danés takes photographs of the city’s residents as they pass by on buses or on the street, their faces enveloped in dark shadows, full of unease. The term black ice describes the almost invisible coating of glazed ice on surfaces in winter which makes movement both difficult and insecure. Barcelona-born Danés, whose work has been exhibited around the world, uses the term as a visual metaphor for life in Russia today, which he believes is characterised by alienation.