Yassin

Yassin is a series of figure studies and portraits of Yassin El Messoudi, a young equilibrist in the circus, his brothers Soffien and Karim (and a number of their canine companions) taken during the summer of 2006. Rather than choosing to look at magic and whimsy as the essence of circus (as in work on the subject by documentary photographers Bruce Davidson or Mary Ellen Mark) this series takes a critical examination at how the circus can become a place to observe masculine identities and explores notions of sexuality and the world of maleness. The portraits were set mainly in and around their caravan home with its small-scale emblems of strength such as boxing gloves and knives. The images are ultimately about performance, and the role it plays in the teenage struggle for identity and self-esteem. In the case of the three Messoudi siblings the performance is a testament to their showmanship and ultimately becomes a manifestation of their freedom, transition and transformation.

By looking at aspects of body politics in the context of formalist and social documentary photography, and considering the role of the portrait within this kind of enquiry, the work investigates how identity and community are constructed out of marginality, and the ethical ambivalence that surrounds the approach of documenting the lives of displaced people within the context of contemporary art.

Text by Itai Doron and afterword by acclaimed American photographer Joseph Szabo.