Pedro Duarte Jorge’s Souvenirs From Paris Photo

By Pedro Duarte Jorge, edited by Hamzeh Alfarahneh on 27.01.23

Every November, the art world descends into the Grand Palais to attend or exhibit at Paris Photo, the largest and most influential international art fair dedicated to the photographic medium established in 1997. A Hotel Life contributing photographer and photo artist Pedro Duarte Jorge attended the fair, witnessing and synthesizing the bountiful photographic exhibitions and photo-centric programming that took the city for the occasion. As part of his ever-evolving practice, embedding poetic interpretations of reality ,Pedro’s work captures moments that reflect a weirdly human presence that converses with narratives that revolve around the conceptions of beauty and eternity. Pedro is also the founder of A Homem Mau, a creative studio  and exhibition space in Lisbon, Portugal, that aims to support budding artists in developing their independent projects. We asked Pedro to collate his reflective and thought-provoking field notes and imagery as visual souvenirs of the photogenic city. 

I love our capacity and creativity to create joy and happiness in simple acts like these girls having fun with their shadows and creating new stories on the wall. 

There is something about the impossibility of humans and their “conquests” not being able to confront themselves. Take me almost to that “snob” myth about the Parisians, like if our deeds are not for everyone’s eyes, being simple on the analysis and, in this case, the humans are ok with that, and they know their place. Of course, they must be restoring the monument, but it seems funny.

With a fair as big as Paris Photo, the city’s cultural programming shifts towards exhibiting more photographic galleries, which is always a joy to attend. This included Polycopies, a smaller fair happening concurrently with Paris Photo.

One of my highlights was attending Boris Mikhailov´s exhibition at Maison Européenne de la Photographie (MEP). Boris is an incredible photographer and artist that worked for decades in Ukraine during communism. He worked as an engineer and was a self-taught photographer. His journey in photography started when he was given a camera — sponsored by the regime — so he could document the activities of his colleagues, neighbors, and the public at large. But he was fired from his job once the KGB discovered those beautiful and tasteful nude images he took of his wife. Regardless he continued to document the daily lives in the USSR under intense scrutiny, imprisonment, and confiscation of his photographic equipment by the security forces, which saw his work as a deviation from the aesthetics of communism. He sustained his livelihood by selling his photographs on the black market and continued creating images that angered the regime. I admire the wit and playfulness in Boris’ work which are usually carried through in the titles such as “Yesterday’s Sandwich” (1960´s), “National Hero” (1991), and the list goes on. 

You can follow Pedro on Instagram and see more of his work on his website.

Have you signed up for our monthly newsletter yet? Never spammy, always bringing you the best and coolest hotels in the world and global lifestyle culture, all through the eyes of industry insiders and local tastemakers.  Sign up here!