In these bold, black-and-white images, unrecognized people from many countries get a chance to be seen, thanks to the work of French photographer and artist JR.
In 2004, French artist JR found an abandoned camera on the Paris metro. Ever since, he’s been taking black-and-white portraits of people and pasting these oversized images on walls, scaffolds, rooftops and other surfaces around the world. In Paris, his images have humanized young people living in the projects; in the Middle East, his display stressed the commonality between Israelis and Palestinians; and in cities like Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Kibera, Kenya, his floating eyes celebrated the incredible strength of women. JR sees portraits as transformative for the person pictured. “They are a way to say, ‘I exist,” he explains, but they are bigger than that. They serve as a reminder of the inherent dignity of every individual and can safeguard against the instinct to distance and dehumanize.
As the winner of the 2011 TED Prize, JR decided to share his methods with the world through a project called INSIDE OUT. He invited anyone, anywhere, to take portraits in their community and with a social message in mind. His studio then prints them up as large-scale posters and mails them back to be displayed in a public space. More than 300,000 posters have now gone up in 140 countries, and a new book, JR: Inside Out, has just been published that celebrates the breadth and impact of these actions. “Six years later, I am still amazed every day by the creative power of participants,” says JR.
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