Mathis Benestebe, Jelani, From the Erinle series, 2023, Pigment print, 16 x 20 inches, $540.

Erinlé is an autobiographical story exploring the difficulty of finding one’s own identity without models. The first chapter focuses on the absence of representation and the impossibility of projecting oneself into any kind of figure. This leads to an urgent need to discover the faces of those with similar paths. The second chapter introduces the infinite possibilities of personal stories and experiences that have gender transition in common. Each person represents a new model of fulfillment, and a new, unexpected encounter.However the emergence of red announces the first signs of the violence provoked by these new social identities. In the Yoruba religious traditions of West Africa, Erinlé is a deity, master of fishing, warrior and hunter. Androgynous in appearance, his worship originated with the Ilobu people of present-day Nigeria, and was found in the cities of the ancient Oyo Empire. - M. B.

Mathis Benestebe is a 21-year-old photographer. Born in Saint-Nazaire (France), he lives in Toulouse and graduated from the ETPA photography school in 2023. His work revolves around intimacy, autobiography and lack. His work was exhibited in Paris at the Circulation(s) festival in 2023, he’s laureate of the third edition of the Utopi-e prize.