Jean Michel Clajot
Bruxelles, Belgique
Jean-Michel Clajot (b. 1971)
is an independent documentary photographer. For nearly 20 years, he has focused on intimate stories about African and Asian families and subcultures. His story on the LadyBoy, Born to be a Woman, was awarded the 2011 Pride Photo Award for documentary.
As of July 2006, He joined Cosmos Photo Agency (Paris) as a represented photographer, to focus on a combination of long-term personal projects, breaking news and client assignments.
Jean-Michel's work has been published in multiple press media such as Le Monde, CNN.com, National Geographic, Newsweek, Time, Grands Reportages, China News… In 2008, the three years project "Scarifications", photographing the Scarifications Culture in Benin, has been published in a book by Yovo Editions and shown in galleries in Brussels, Paris and Italy. The book was selected in 2008 by National Geographic for the LOOK3 Exhibit in Charlottesville, in the USA.
In 2014, “Born To be a Woman” was exhibited at the Hirado Trading Post Museum in Japan.
His photography is featured in art galleries worldwide, including Cosmos Gallery in Paris, Ikono in Brussels, the Arte Foto Festival in Italy and Visa Pour l'Image International Festival of Photojournalism.
- Breaking news
- Corporate
- Crisis
- Editorial
- Portrait
- Reporting
THE COMPLEX WORLD OF LOVE IN THAILAND
Jean Michel Clajot
You can’t choose how you’re born, but you can choose how to live your life. Thailand seems to be the most tolerant place for the LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex ) community. However, tolerance doesn’t mean acceptance. For the LGBTI people who have already revealed their gender identity tend to often be the ones that have been mistreated by the general public and the media due to the lack of knowledge and understanding. In Thai society, transmen are still in the shadow of ‘tomboy’ culture. While the terms of ‘transwoman’ and ‘tomboy’ have been well known among Thai people for many decades, the term of ‘transman’ only been introduced about 5 years ago. “Phu Chai Kham Phej” is a Thai term that has been translated from a western term ‘transman’ which means a transgender person who was assigned female at birth but whose gender identity is that of a man. © Jean-Michel Clajot
Born to be a woman
Jean Michel Clajot
LadyBoys, Born to be a Woman...Thailand's Buddhist majority displays what may be the world's most tolerant attitude towards what locals call kathoey, loosely translated as "ladyboys."
Publication
Jean Michel Clajot
Jean-Michel's work has been published in multiple press media such as Le Monde, CNN.com, BBC Focus on Africa, Fader New-York, Furfur Russian Magazine, Days Japan, De Morgen, National Geographic, Newsweek, Time, Grands Reportages, China News...