Man, life is rough! Wouldn’t it be nice to just drop everything and escape the hustle and bustle of the modern day world? Tempting, I know. Also, a seemingly plausible plan – up until you realize that in order to do that, you’d have to say goodbye to the comforts and luxuries of modern life. Are you willing to give up wifi and the latest gadgets for a carefree life in the woods?
While you ponder on, doubtful now than you were seconds ago, you’d be surprised to know that there are people who already made their choice to live alone in the wilderness. And a brilliant photographer has these thought-provoking photos that’ll show us what life is like isolated from the rest of the world.
In a book titled “Escape”, Russian photographer Danila Tkachenko, captures the life of people who broke entirely free from the pressures of socialization and decided to live completely off the grid.
Danila Tkachenko
Danila Tkachenko went out into the wilderness in search of people living alone, hidden throughout the Russian and Ukrainian forests.
Danila Tkachenko
There he found an assortment of people who had decided to leave civil society to live instead as outcasts, or rather “escapers.”
Danila Tkachenko
Danila’s photos gives us a peak into a life against the norm. A life they live all on their own, in the middle of nowhere.
Danila Tkachenko
We live amongst other people, forming bonds and becoming part of larger communities and in turn enjoys support, comfort, and stability which we believe are necessary to feel happy and secure. But for the “escapers”, it’s a far better option to live alone, away from the pressures of society.
Danila Tkachenko
Danila said: “I am concerned about the issue of internal freedom in the modern society: how feasible it is, when you’re surrounded by a social framework…. School, work, family- once in this cycle, you are a prisoner of your own position, and have to do what you’re supposed to do.”
Danila Tkachenko
Danila Tkachenko
Although its tempting to see how these people enjoy a life without obligations, it’s important to realize that living alone in the wild is not as easy as it may seem. For starters, survival requires knowing how to fend for yourself completely.
Danila Tkachenko
Danila Tkachenko
In today’s world where we crave for more technological comforts, these people go back to a simpler, less-complicated lifestyle.
Danila Tkachenko
Surprisingly enough, Danila Tkachenko’s photographs prove to show that many people have what it takes to survive happily on their own in the wild.
Danila Tkachenko
Is this really what “true freedom” looks like? Because in the modern world, with all our day-to-day confines, such a thing is as good as fiction.
Danila Tkachenko
In Tkachenko’s book, this quote is inserted at the beginning:
“Man does not need society at all, it’s the society that needs man. Society is a forced measure of protection and survival. Unlike a gregarious animal, man must live alone- in nature among animals, plants and in contact with them.” -Andrey Tarkovsky
Danila Tkachenko
Danila Tkachenko
Credit: Danila Tkachenko │ Via EarthPorm