Tom Marsden

While living in Azerbaijan, between 2015 and 2020 I travelled often to the village of Ivanovka in the Ismayilli region. At the time I was learning photography and in search of a project, and this place stood out to me as it seemed completely lost in time. Founded by Russian Molokans exiled as heretics to the South Caucasus in the early 19th century, the village is still home to a large Russian population, including a small community of practising Molokans, as well as the country's last functioning Soviet-style collective farm.