Photographing ‘HUMANITY’: KYOTOGRAPHIE 2025 (Part 2)

Held across various locations in Kyoto until May 11, KYOTOGRAPHIE 2025 embraced the theme of HUMANITY. Continuing from the first part of our feature, we take a closer look at more standout exhibitions from this site-specific international photography festival, uniquely rooted in Kyoto.

Sculpting with Hair: Laetitia Ky – ‘A KYOTO HAIR-ITAGE’ / ‘LOVE & JUSTICE’

Since opening DELTA｜KYOTOGRAPHIE Permanent Space in Demachi Masugata Shopping Arcade in 2020, KYOTOGRAPHIE had been developing a project that connected Kyoto’s local shopping streets with African culture, inviting emerging contemporary African artists as artists-in-residence.

One of this year’s featured artists, Laetitia Ky, centered her practice on the idea of ‘bringing her imagination into reality,’ crafting intricate sculptural forms from her own hair and turning them into powerful photographic messages.

Born and raised in Côte d’Ivoire, Ky grew up in a society where straight hair and light skin were seen as ideals of beauty and success. Her female relatives routinely bleached their skin and chemically straightened their hair. But at age sixteen, a hair-straightening treatment severely damaged her scalp, causing most of her hair to fall out. That experience led her to embrace her natural hair: she shaved her head and started again. Later, she discovered how women in pre-colonial Africa had used hair as a sculptural form of self-expression. Inspired, Ky began to share her own hair sculptures online, embedding messages about femininity and empowerment.

Her work was shown in two locations. At ASPHODEL in Gion, the exhibition titled LOVE & JUSTICE featured pieces that addressed the invisible labor of women, gender-based violence, and self-love expressed through playful and affirming imagery. Meanwhile, in the Demachi Masugata Shopping Arcade, she presented works that celebrated the joy of being in Kyoto and interpreted local culture through her signature hair sculptures. The dual exhibitions revealed both sides of her artistry: the strength to speak out on social issues, and the softness to embrace and celebrate cultural diversity.

French photographer Éric Poitevin, based in Meurthe-et-Moselle in northeastern France, is known for his precisely composed landscapes and studio portraits of flora and fauna. For KYOTOGRAPHIE, he chose to depart from the white cube gallery format and exhibit in Ryosokuin Temple in Gion—a bold step that aligned perfectly with his contemplative approach.

‘Whether a landscaped garden or the nature I photograph, both are man-made constructs,’ Poitevin explains. ‘I hope that presenting them side-by-side invites viewers to reconsider the value of nature itself.’

Without bringing in display structures or elaborate installations, Poitevin focused on presence and restraint. The prints, affixed to the sliding fusuma panels of the temple, create a serene and quietly immersive space—one that beautifully embodies the aesthetics of minimal intervention. Perhaps a little shy, he nonetheless struck a charming pose in front of his work when asked for a portrait.

French artist JR launched his participatory mural series Chronicles in 2017, inspired by the work of Mexican muralist Diego Rivera (1886–1957). In autumn 2024, JR and his team set up mobile studios across eight locations in Kyoto—including Kyoto Station, City Hall, and the Kamo River Delta—and photographed 505 residents for a monumental photographic mural: JR Chronicles Kyoto 2024.

Each of the 505 subjects—including maiko, tea masters, monks, artisans, drag queens, and KYOTOGRAPHIE co-directors Lucille Reyboz and Yusuke Nakanishi—shared their personal stories, which were recorded and made available online. At the Kyoto Shimbun Building, the accompanying exhibition Printing the Chronicles of Kyoto offered a glimpse into the project’s creative process. Inside the former printing plant, a powerful installation unfolded: large-scale portraits rose from the space in striking three-dimensional form, while the voices of the subjects filled the room with their narratives. Whether famous or unknown, every person has a story worth honoring—a truth this exhibition illuminated, reminding visitors of something easily overlooked in daily life.