This interview with poet Vera Polozkova by Yury Dud explores her life, work, and perspectives on the 2022 war in Ukraine. The conversation delves into her reasons for leaving Russia, her views on the Russian government and the conflict, and her artistic process.
Vera Polozkova mentions that she has three children: Fedya, Savva, and Arina. Fedya, her oldest, understood the war immediately and even designed a robot shelter to protect people from bombings. She explains that leaving Russia was presented to her younger children as a simple trip. Her ex-husband, who was in Siberia when the war started, asked her what she would do, to which she responded that she wasn't sure what to do and hadn't decided whether to leave or not. She also references that two people helped her significantly with the decision to leave; a best friend who encouraged her to leave daily, and a friend, Miron, who checked up on her constantly, asking if she had purchased tickets and left yet. The transcript also includes a brief mention of a current partner who is the father of her third child, though she declines to name him publicly, citing a wish for him to remain out of the public eye. She notes that this relationship began after a previous difficult relationship and was largely a means to help her cope with the challenges of raising two young children alone. She also briefly mentions her mother's reaction, in terms of her expressing shock and disbelief that she is experiencing a second similar conflict (in her lifetime) with the current war in Ukraine.
