Heroes is my first series of photographs. This series of portraits represents the main two sides of my conception of manliness, a combination of strength and fragility.
It then made me think of Ancient Greece demigods – also called “Heroes” – who have this double identity: half-gods half-humans, both strong and vulnerable. Yet, contrary to Ancient Greece representations of demigods, I did not want to idealize manliness or represent men who would have embodied contemporary standards of beauty.
I did not search for perfect features. The men I chose were not professional models.
They then all expressed very personal and authentic feelings when they found themselves in front of the camera for the first time. The posture the models had to hold was often a very uncomfortable contortion and it was hard for them to try and hide that they were suffering for their features to convey a certain softness. Their broad shoulders, tense trapezius and craned necks show their force while their busts, their half-closed eyes and facial expressions convey a feeling of fragility, weakness, fallibility, dejection, or grace. [Official Website]
