NY911.F10.11.12 | Spring 2001 | View of the Statue of Liberty and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge from the rooftop of the World Trade Center south tower

Living in New York, I witnessed the events of 9/11 on my way to work. Back then, I used to carry a camera with me at all times, which allowed me to capture these photographs.

This was an extremely difficult time; the magnitude of the destruction has shaken the sense of reality in everyone in New York City.

In the days that followed, my friends and I were searching through hospitals in the city for our close friend Alexander Lygin, who worked at Cantor Fitzgerald on the 104th floor of 1 World Trade Center. At that time we did not know that he was not coming home. On September 14th I stayed in the city overnight; the night view of the Ground Zero was photographed then.

Looking back, I realize that I was incapable of shooting a single image that could be personally connected to Sasha: the walls of photographs of missing people, hospitals, memorials, faces of people who were desperately searching for their loved ones.

This series is an account of both loss and strength that filled the air of New York City at that time.