During Ukrainian Fashion Week, held at the National Art and Cultural Museum Complex 'Museum Arsenal' in Kyiv on September 4, 2026, a model showcased creations from the Bob Basset brand collection. This took place against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
At Kyiv's largest art museum, Arina Petrova and her father Sergey were putting the finishing touches on mannequins, fearing that a Russian drone attack might delay her long-awaited debut. The design duo from the Ukrainian art-house 'Bob Basset' was preparing to present Petrova's first collection—a set of punk-style leather animal costumes.
However, daily Russian drone attacks on the Ukrainian capital, triggering air raid alerts and paralyzing city life, presented the pair with more pressing issues. Petrova told AFP that they were ready to hold the show in a shelter if necessary and could bring all models and her string musician into the basement for the presentation.
Petrova and her 50-year-old father run their punk fashion studio in Kharkiv, a city subjected to intense shelling near the Russian border. Having arrived in the capital by minivan with finished designs, the pair aimed to demonstrate through their art that Kharkiv remains alive.
Petrova worried that a drone could interrupt the event. The twenty-eight-year-old designer sighed, stating, 'We want time to say what we want to say.' She added that if the show was stopped, they would continue it underground, even if they had to use phone flashlights for illumination.
As Petrova adjusted the lace on a corset, a siren sounded: Russian jet drones were approaching. Security personnel evacuated the audience. Outside, the woman in the red dress posed for the photographer; after a loud explosion, she flinched but continued posing with a smile without hesitation. In the distance, a column of black smoke rose above the buildings.
'Becoming More Ferocious'
While other designs at Kyiv Fashion Week were characterized by brightness, the Bob Basset collection was monochromatic. Against large black draperies, the designers arranged a black leather breastplate adorned with a feather-like detail, which they planned to combine with a black horse mask.
In her first collection titled 'Mutabor' ('I will transform,' in Latin), Petrova based her designs on creatures imagined by her father—dark, feathered animals with claws. The designer told AFP: 'I feel that during the war everyone must become a little more ferocious... grow fangs.' She continued: 'You acquire something from an animal that makes you stronger.'
Before Russia's invasion in February 2022, Bob Basset gained a reputation for its leather mask designs, some of which were worn by metal bands Korn and Slipknot. However, when Russian troops approached the outskirts of Kharkiv in 2022, the group closed its workshop, and the family relocated to the west. Far from their hometown, Sergey fell into depression. Leaving his wife and children safe in Europe, he returned to Kharkiv under shelling. He admitted: 'I am afraid. But I am even more afraid that tomorrow I won't be able to do anything.'
Their collection at Kyiv Fashion Week was the first in 11 years.
Fashion Amidst Bombs
Sergey, concealing his nearsightedness with a mask, made facial coverings a central element of his work—a way to reinterpret his identity. He began creating masks free of charge for wounded soldiers who wished to hide their scars. His daughter joined him, and despite sleepless nights, the workshop in Kharkiv came back to life. She noted: 'If I hadn't returned, this collection would never have existed.'
Minutes before the show began, Petrova looked anxious. In Kharkiv, the alert system kept her awake at night as Russia bombed warehouses and logistics centers, complicating their work. She said: 'If something hits the studio, everything we worked on for a year will disappear.' She also noted: 'Every day there is this feeling that we have very little time. Something could happen, and you won't finish in time.'
During a short break from the incoming strikes, the string musician played several pieces. Then the models silently walked through the crowd, their faces masked, against the backdrop of mobile phone flashes. The presentation concluded with a mix of applause and air raid sirens.
A woman approached Sergey to congratulate him, dressed in a dress made from parts of drones. On the square, Petrova smiled despite the anti-aircraft explosions in the sky. She was accustomed to it. In Kharkiv, in her words, 'only those who can create in such conditions remain.'