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Presentation

My current body of work, a series of portraits of different ethnic groups with tattooed and body painted faces, is inspired from observing the diverse ethnic groups living in Paris. Seeing the scared and tattooed faces of the various West Africans in their traditional costumes, in the African market place in Paris or the body painted faces of the Sri Lankans and Indians celebrating Hindu religious festivals in the eighteenth district or veiled North African women through out the city, makes me feel as if I am living in an exotic country instead of one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. Seeing tattooed and body pierced youths ride along side of the Africans marked by tribal scares deeply moved me, and illustrated to me how the human body itself can be transformed into a work of art

Joe Johnson