The intent of my body of works is to take the audience on an expedition beyond our globalized first world society. I want to open a doorway to showcase the forgotten voices and give them a chance to speak out for themselves. The works presented are original inspired creations of photographs, watercolor pencil and pencil drawings. I have taken whilst traveling around the world from a small festival in Spain, to the hectic city of Zurich in Switzerland, to the Karen hill-tribes of Northern Thailand in the province of Mae Hong Son.
I want the audience to be transported into this world of harmony amongst humanity and showcase the different lifestyles of each culture from the societies’ minorities to those of the first world. From the small festival in Spain to the hectic city of Zurich to the rural homes of the hill tribes in Northern Thailand – all demonstrating the human qualities we all possess as we carry on with our daily routines, all demonstrating how their cultural heritage has shaped them into the society they have become a part of today.
Moros y Cristianos celebrated mainly in the southern Valencian Community commemorating the battles, combats, and fights between the Moors (Muslims) and Christians during a period known as Reconquista (8th - 15th century). The festival showcases the capture of the city by the Moors and the subsequent Christian reconquest. The festival usually lasts for several days featuring parades with pompous costumes loosely inspired by medieval fashion portrayed through my photographs and watercolor pencil piece.
Zurich, my birthplace and one the most famous cities of the world, was an eye opener to the vast amount of different individuals that could exist within a single community. There were so many different kinds of ethnicities to the extent it became overwhelming. I had the opportunity to candidly photograph some very interesting looking individuals and showcase the disconnection of a first world society through intentional sketch like drawings to let imagination take over as it envisions a short film.
Hill tribes are often overlooked in our society as minorities, when they are truly the ones who have kept tradition alive for all these centuries, making them wiser than the rest of us. They have maintained their traditional ways of life for generations. I wanted to grasp this concept by capturing and portraying the people of the Karen hill-tribes of Northern Thailand in their natural state of mind along with their customs and traditions that still remain a major part of their daily life. Each individual in that village had unique characteristics about them along with ages ranging from newborns to the elderly and wise that intrigued me greatly. It was as though they each told a different story, but as a whole remained similar within their community. I had a grand opportunity to photograph these individuals and live amongst them for a week. Taking the photographs whilst being involved in activities was challenging, as I always had to keep an eye open and looking for perfect opportunities. I call these “in the moment” photographs - unique, candid, and all around natural - not directed positions like they would in a studio.
The intent of the layout of my exhibition is so that the audience can view my works from any angle permitting the eyes to scan around the space and absorb the concept of a variety of cultures. I arranged the exhibit in a manner that there is a balance between youth and elders along with cultural ethnicities supporting my theme of Cultural Identity. Each work showcases the current stage of life that the individual is at and depicts the extent to which they have been exposed to their surroundings and culture. The beauty within our world lies within those who have experienced it first hand, seen, and felt the most.
These photographs are mere glimpses of the hidden wonders of the world. As Christopher Columbus once said “You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”
- Joelle Soraya Batista Iseli
