The project “The Men I Stand On” was started by the author in 2014 during the beginning of a divorce process. After eight years of marriage and living in a classic patriarchal family, the author exits the relationship and starts a new independent life with two children. Reevaluating values and seeking independence helps the author embark on a new path, yet the clashes with the patriarchal world persist intimately. Endless disputes between former spouses, who have a post-Soviet past and a significant age difference, transition to more general territories.

The questions of how and with whom children spend time with the parents, how to divide jointly acquired property, and other everyday matters are often resolved imperatively within the post-Soviet family. The  author, finding herself in a vulnerable position and compelled to continue submitting to male authority (lacking the support of governmental institutions and experiencing fear), finds solace in exploring patriarchal relationships and gender roles within her project.

“The Men I Stand On” is an inversion of the patriarchal gaze in which men hold power and make key decisions. Female legs stand on a male chest. The man’s gaze is fixed directly at the camera, while the author (a woman) looks from above and has the advantage. Or is she allowed to do this?