All Belarusian Partygoers Know This Photographer. Paznyak Respected Him. We Talked with Johnny Cosmic
An IT specialist primarily perceived as a photographer, a Mahilioŭ native considered a capital dandy, a music-loving audiophile, a person who daily carries a camera and several kilograms of envelopes with photos of Belarusians in his bag — Ivan Smaliar (Johnny Cosmic) can, without exaggeration, be called a chronicler of party-scene Minsk, and now of the Belarusian diaspora in Warsaw.
Recently, friends organized a personal secret exhibition for his 34th birthday in Warsaw — it became another good story about how solidary Belarusians can be when it comes to expressing gratitude and support.
The pseudonym Johnny Cosmic appeared when Ivan registered his Instagram account — the guy initially thought of being Johnny Space, but that username was already taken. Anyway, after his photos started being described with the words 'simply cosmic,' everything fell into place. Photos from the event here and below: Ruslan Seradzyuk
We talked with him about the difference between Belarusian parties in Minsk and in emigration, alcohol and depression, compatriots who forbid him from photographing them, Zianon Paznyak and Maria Kalesnikava, the reasons for moving abroad, and his dream photo.
"You Take Photos, You Give Photos — It's Like Saying Thank You for Helping Not to Go Crazy"
"I went to various specialists, I had experience with both group and individual therapy — and it was all great. But it turned out that it was the exhibition that made me the happiest person in the world, dividing my life into 'before' and 'after'. I cried for several days and couldn't sleep from the wave of emotions: my first personal exhibition, which was given to me as a gift. I really straightened my back after all of this! And now I can charge water through screens. When something happens that you couldn't even dream of, it feels like anything is possible now," Ivan sincerely shares.
Only a part of the photos from Johnny Cosmic's personal exhibition.
For the third week in a row, from morning till night, Ivan is at (one could even say lives at) the Warsaw cafe Community Cup — it was here that the Belarusian owners of the space kindly allowed a photo tribute to Johnny Cosmic to be held until February 27.
Two thousand photos filled the cafe space under the ceiling as if they had been there since its opening. On them are the faces of very different Belarusians: artists, writers, presenters, politicians, journalists, coaches…
"I've taken a vacation now — it's turning into a month-long birthday celebration. I love birthdays, and now mine too. All my life I've clearly separated things: I have an education and profession as a programmer, while photography was a hobby, an outlet that helped me not to lose my mind. You code your code, and then you go somewhere to rest, relax, meet wonderful people there — you photograph them, then you give them the photos — as if thanking them for helping you not to go crazy. And the next day, you go back to the office."
Photography always fascinated Vanya: it all started with his father's film point-and-shoot camera. He photographed everything with enviable regularity. Similarly — head over heels — he became captivated by computers after receiving one for his birthday from his godfather.
"I attended programming courses in Mahilioŭ where we studied Pascal. The computer was love at first sight, and it was somehow automatically clear that this was the future, that it could be made a profession. Nobody told me about photography in such a context, although everyone had photo albums, everyone around was developing film."
Portfolio Includes Portraits of Bi-2, Mikhalk and the Belarusian Opposition
Ivan graduated from BSUIR, and in 2017, he first started renting professional equipment — to finally choose something of his own. That period is connected with a story that well characterizes the extroverted and assertive side of the Mahilioŭ native.
"At Falcon Club, concerts were held two days in a row — on the first day Mumiy Troll performed, on the second — the singer LP, whom I love very much. Everyone told me they wouldn't just let me in there with a camera, and it was really scary to go, because at that very period a photographer was beaten at "Re:Public" (it was, as I later found out, Ruslan Seradzyuk). But they let me in!
I calmly photographed Ilya Lagutenko, and one of the managers even approached me, asking me to share the photos afterward, which I took as a very good sign; we exchanged contacts. But at the LP concert, I apparently got carried away — photographing right by the stage — so security approached me. They asked who I was, I tried to wriggle out of it and mentioned yesterday's manager — saying she had invited me to photograph. The guard went to ask if that was true, and at that moment I quickly packed up the rented equipment, thinking: let them do whatever they want with me, but just don't touch the camera, because it cost crazy money."
In the end, Ivan was treated humanely, with them simply explaining that everyone was only allowed to photograph the first three songs.
Getting into the best corners of the hall and even into artists' dressing rooms was further facilitated by acquaintances Ivan quickly made at various capital events. Thus he made a portrait of Sergey Mikhalok (on the last frame of the roll), photographed 'Molchat Doma', Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, Naviband, Nizkiz, Ivan Dorn, Luna, Monetochka and Noise MC, as well as, for example, concerts by Max Korzh, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Iggy Pop and The Weeknd.
Sergey Mikhalok
Naviband and Bi-2
Nizkiz
Has His Own "Arya Stark List" from "Game of Thrones"
Johnny says that he almost never had communication problems with anyone, however, he does have his own "Arya Stark list" from "Game of Thrones" — people who refused his offer to take a portrait when they met.
"In this list, for example, there's a big blogger, a big restaurateur, and a big photographer. But I'll photograph them all one day anyway!" Ivan voices a playful threat.
Over thousands upon thousands of shutter clicks, the protagonist sometimes encountered aggression and threats, but, he says, it never came to physical altercations.
"Once in Minsk, still at the 'El Pushka' bar, I extended my hand with a point-and-shoot camera upwards and took a group photo — everyone saw the flash. And immediately some man, who was kissing a woman on the windowsill (clearly not his wife), tensed up sharply. He approached me with a very aggressive demeanor, but he was so drunk that I immediately understood he wouldn't be able to hurt me. As a result, he asked to see the photo and delete it, and was very upset that none of that was possible, because I was shooting on film."
The photographer became a regular at fashionable Minsk establishments and admits that visits were not without drinks, but since January 1, 2025, the guy has not consumed alcohol.
"I have a favorite joke that I did with alcohol what I did with my beard: if you love it, let it go. Alcohol simply brought nothing good (even though I never had a hangover). I quit with a snap of my fingers, realizing that's it, I don't want it anymore."
At the same time, if you were to define the main Belarusian partygoer, Vanya himself could still claim the spot of leader.
"It happens naturally, because I love music, so I often attend concerts. I love people, so I visit places where they gather."
His love for music also manifests in the desire to master instruments — back in school, Ivan attended guitar lessons at the Mahilioŭ Palace of Pioneers, later learned to play the piano, and already in Warsaw attended a master class for drummers.
"I Didn't Save Anything, Sometimes I Even Had to Borrow Before Payday"
"I didn't save anything, sometimes I even had to borrow before payday. Therefore, I had neither an apartment nor a car, but precisely for this reason, it was easier to emigrate."
Cosmic left Belarus in the autumn of 2022 after problems began for those who appeared in the book with posters from the 2020 protests 'I Am Coming Out'.
"My portrait wasn't there, but photos I took were. But even if there hadn't been the story with that book, I would have still left eventually, because everything that constituted my former life seemed to disappear in Belarus. People, first and foremost. And regarding work: of course, I received great offers in IT, but there was one nuance: these were companies from Rashka. In Warsaw, I can try to interview at 'Google' itself; there are more professional opportunities here. Plus, I wouldn't be able to live without concerts: in emigration, I've been to Verka Serduchka several times, to whose music I used to dance as a child," Ivan explains.
"By the way, one of the most tear-jerking phrases that reached me after the exhibition was: 'Minsk regrets that this didn't happen there.' That is indeed very sad. And there is a lot of sadness around. However, thanks to my surroundings, I can say: with my photos, which I give to people, I show that everything is not so bad. For example, I photographed Mikita Naidzionau (presenter and poet, former political prisoner — NN) in Minsk before his arrest — he's smiling there. And in photos from Warsaw, he's also smiling. Life goes on."
In 2020, without accreditation, Vanya photographed all the main political upheaval. In his opinion, the solidarity of 2020 is the best thing that happened to Belarusians from what he saw with his own eyes.
Among other things, Ivan brought with him portraits of Maria Kalesnikava and Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, which he gave to them literally the other day — almost six years later. During this time, both women went through a lot — Sviatlana experienced emigration and life with children without her husband, political growth; Maria experienced years in a penal colony, so their photos are a true historical document.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Maria Kalesnikava in Ivan's photos in 2020
"Our last meeting with Masha was in Minsk at the women's march. And if someone had told me then that the next time I would see her would be in Warsaw after five years in prison… She smiled the same way — both then, before the crowd on the avenue, and when getting off the bus that brought them from Ukraine after deportation."
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Maria Kalesnikava in Ivan's photos in 2025
The photographer managed to avoid problems with the police and OMON (riot police) during those heated times.
"I'm actually a very timid person in that regard. And as soon as I saw someone driving somewhere, I immediately decided: we're not going there. Because it's scary," the interviewee admits.
Already in emigration, Cosmic took a photo of Zianon Paznyak at a march in honor of Freedom Day. The politician himself highly praised it, inviting Ivan to a meeting where he presented him with two author's books with an autograph and the inscription 'To the esteemed photo master Ivan'.
Politician Zianon Paznyak through the lens of Ivan Smaliar
"Paznyak is a historical figure. And it was truly a great honor for me to photograph him, and in such a way that he liked it. After all, he is also a photographic artist."
"Dream Photo – To Take a Portrait of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Volodymyr Zelenskyy"
"It looks like if I now start looking for a new job in IT, it will be difficult, because even more people have started to perceive me as a photographer. It's as if I myself no longer have the right to say that I am not a photographer," Johnny shares.
Vanya says he cannot decide on a single genre in which he could present himself.
"A person who saw me in a bar considers me a bar photographer. Someone who met me at a concert considers me a music photographer. A person who once in his life invited me to a studio thinks I'm a portrait photographer. But I just like to shoot! And I would shoot everything! I was invited to weddings, there were reports, and product photos for websites. And recently, for the first time in my life, I photographed a couple expecting a child — it's awesome, isn't it!"
Among his dream photos is to take a portrait of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Soon, the photographer will launch a personal website where one can get more detailed information about his portfolio and prices. After the exhibition, he is energized for bigger plans.
"Now it seems that a second exhibition is also possible. And a book. And postcards finally need to be released.
Now reading
In Poznań, a gynecologist removed the uterus and ovaries of a 24-year-old Belarusian woman without her consent. The doctor faces up to 20 years in prison 2828
Comments