A tribute to Ukrainian railway workers
The War Museum has presented the multimedia exhibition “Iron People” – an original project by Dutch photographer and documentary filmmaker Jelle Krings. The exhibition tells the story of the courage and dedication of Ukrainian railway workers during the russo-Ukrainian war.
Opening the event, the Museum’s General Director, Yurii Savchuk, emphasized that the Museum team strives to illuminate the war in all its dimensions, and that Ukrzaliznytsia today is something more than a corporation. It is a strong community of “iron people” who have become a pillar for Ukraine’s Defense Forces and for civilians during the largest armed conflict in Europe since the Second World War. The Museum’s director expressed gratitude to Jelle Krings and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ukraine for their cooperation, to the entire Museum team for implementing this important international project, and separately to the Museum’s designer-architect Eliz Ecce Coşkun, who created and realized the exhibition’s visual concept – her debut project.
The exhibition became possible thanks to the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ukraine. The Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Alle Dorgaut, emphasized that this is another important opportunity for his country to express solidarity with Ukraine in its struggle against the aggressor.
Deputy Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, Oleksii Balesta, thanked Jelle Krings, international partners, and the Museum for highlighting the work of railway workers, as behind every dangerous route a train takes and behind every valuable cargo delivered stand these people.
With an emotional address, Oleksandr Pertsovskyi, Chairman of the Board of Ukrzaliznytsia, spoke to the audience. He recalled how, on the eve of russia’s full-scale invasion, the Ukrzaliznytsia team planned to launch a tourist route through Bessarabia, but instead had to launch entirely different trains – medical evacuation trains and evacuation trains. He emphasized that this exhibition at the War Museum is the tribute every railway worker deserves.
The Head of the State Treasury Service of Ukraine, Tetiana Sliuz, also attended the opening. She highlighted the coordinated teamwork of railway workers during crises when russian drones and missiles destroy depots and machine-building plants and strike civilian trains.
Project author Jelle Krings shared details of his work on “Iron People: War and Life Along the Railway Tracks of Ukraine”, culminating in the exhibition. Since the beginning of russia’s full-scale invasion, the documentarian had traveled across Ukraine, photographing and filming the work of the railways and railway workers – conductors, engineers, repair crews, and many others. He was especially moved by trains that rescued civilians from the horrors of war in frontline regions and evacuated wounded soldiers. Railway workers Tetiana and Yuliia became the protagonists of his short documentary “Lifeline”, which is also featured in the exhibition.
Tetiana Vislohuza – chief of evacuation train № 233 – and Yuliia, who served on evacuation trains for 36 months, thanked the organizers for truthfully portraying the everyday reality of railway workers during the armed conflict.
To conclude the event, Jelle Krings led a guided tour of the exhibition, and all attendees had the opportunity to speak personally with the author and with the heroes of the project.
“Iron People” is not only an occasion to discuss war, railways, or documentary photography. The exhibition has become a platform for telling the story of the invisible front of Ukrainian railway workers – those who ensure evacuation, logistics, humanitarian transport, and sustain the resilience of the country throughout these challenging years.
