Otto Rabe Creates A Portrait Of The War In Ukraine

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An American photojournalist and humanitarian volunteer discusses his efforts to help at the front

You can listen to the accompanying interview here:

Purchase “Portrait of War” (Opens in a new window) — Follow And Support Humanosh (Opens in a new window)— Contact Otto Rabe On Instagram (Opens in a new window)

“When I got back from Ukraine, and I shared some of these images with people, I saw the effect that they had[...] I saw that it had a visceral effect. I started to think that this might be an avenue… I’ve always been interested in war, I’ve always been interested in art, and I’ve always believed in the power of an image, and I wanted to use those things together with the skillset I’ve acquired throughout my life to try to make a change.”

Otto Rabe (Opens in a new window), 28, an up-and-coming photojournalist, has recently returned from Ukraine. Rabe is in the process of releasing his first print collection–a photobook called Portrait of War (Opens in a new window). The images — mostly captured in Northeast Kharkiv Oblast — document his time with a Ukrainian National Guard unit and working on medical evacuations with the Humanosh Foundation (Opens in a new window), not far from the front line.

Official promotional image for Portrait of War by Otto Rabe

A US Army veteran, Rabe discusses the humanity and everyday reality of these soldiers, and how both Ukraine itself and the outside world process conflict fatigue (Opens in a new window) during Europe’s bloodiest war in 75 years. Moreover, he talks about the impact wavering international attention has had on the humanitarian aid sector through his own anecdotal experiences, and focuses on how the specific needs of these organizations have changed to match what’s become a grinding, sustained conflict.

No stranger to the humanitarian aid space surrounding the war in Ukraine, in 2022, Rabe fundraised nearly $100k for medical supplies and refugee aid under the banner of his now-shuttered charity, Unite For Ukraine. These efforts brought him into contact with the Poland-based humanitarian organization, Humanosh, and he ended up spending several weeks with the group in their efforts throughout Ukraine and Poland.

In December of last year, after taking a break from focusing on his work in Ukraine, the tragic passing of a dear friend and former Army colleague inspired Rabe to reflect once again on what he wanted to do with his life and the network at his disposal. In June, he was contacted by Humanosh, and decided to seize the opportunity to return to the work he’d previously done.

I felt a very strong calling to go back and figure out what I could to to help.

On July 5th, Rabe departed for Ukraine. Originally planning to only deliver supplies, Humanosh asked if he could, instead, conduct medevac operations, taking soldiers from casualty collection points at the front to higher echelons of care. This mission would see him driving an ambulance through a number of the major cities in Ukraine with a paramedic in tow.

Ukraine had changed a lot in my absence. The once nearly abandoned metropolises were now packed to the brim with people, eating at cafes, walking about, and — most importantly — living.

In his civilian life, Rabe works as a photographer, though he initially didn’t plan to bring any of his equipment. The reasoning behind this was that he felt that it would change the dynamic of the interventions he’d be involved with. However, what he found was that he was able to bring moments of normalcy and joy with the camera, and most of the people he encountered would ask for him to take their photos. This eventually led him to meet with the Company Commander of the National Guard unit his group was assisting. The Commander requested that Otto spend time with the Company, take photos, and get to know the soldiers.

Gratefully, despite participating in several live-fire training events, and the Company sustaining a near—miss with a brief artillery barrage, no one was killed or injured to the point of requiring evacuation during Rabe’s short tenure with the formation.

Portrait of War delivers a series of images alongside compelling vignettes of his time with various soldiers, volunteers, and in various locations along the way.

Otto Rabe Photography 2023

“She asked me to try to show pain in this photo. She said to me, that she didn’t want to have a photo that made it look like war was happy, and she wanted me to capture the real emotion she was feeling from watching her country being torn apart by the Russians. Ironically she also asked me to take a photo after this with her smiling in a field of flowers, because it was once a minefield.”

Otto Rabe Photography 2023

“You can tell from his kit that he is either a driver or a gunner, but obviously doesn’t dismount. In another photo in the album that accompanies this one, there is an open back of a Spartan vehicle and inside it, you can see ammo and grenade boxes strewn about from a raid they had been on the night prior. All of the other soldiers seemed to be in good spirits, but he seemed really disconnected. He didn’t ask me to take any individual photos of him aside from this one, while the others really hounded me, or were eager to be in every other group photo. I think you can see that emotion in his brow really strongly.”

Otto Rabe Photography 2023

“With lots of elderly people unable to travel, the volunteers turned some type of community building into this treatment facility and have been treating youth and elderly alike. This place was really strange to visit, and we actually went twice. When we got there, I was instructed not to take a single photo outside of the building, as they had issues with it being targeted and didn’t want to fuel the fire. The soldiers here seemed more closed off than in any place I had been in my time in Ukraine and looked at me multiple times like I was a security risk, because I was carrying a camera. Regardless of that, the civilians working in the facility were extremely kind, and have been working day and night to fill the gap in healthcare created by the war. Extremely kind people here, one dude hunted me down and refused to let me go without a meal, although I tried to turn it down twice.”

Otto Rabe Photography 2023

“This tank was destroyed during the battle of Kupiansk. Someone had written ‘Gunslinger Central’ on it, which, depending on who wrote it and when, it can carry a lot of irony. This tank is surrounded by buildings and a cemetery that were destroyed during the battle.

The photobook came from Rabe’s desire to develop a new avenue of fundraising, while also delivering accounts of the very people whose stories he wants the world to know. These are stories of normal people going through extraordinary, but sometimes extremely relatable, circumstances.

…See all of the houses destroyed. See people’s lives destroyed and taken away, tell me that they don’t need help.

All of the funds raised through sales of Portrait of War will go directly towards replacing medical evacuation vehicles and equipment for soldiers near the front lines.