Stereotypes Harm
Photographic series by Adrien COURTOIS-ZHANG
Minority groups are often seen not as individuals, but as simplified labels — the “model immigrant,” the “exotic other,” the “threat,” the “service worker.” These are not just words. They are stereotypes: socially constructed ideas that reduce real people into clichés.
As a Asian photographer living in France, I have often felt the weight of these stereotypes — sometimes subtle, sometimes violent, always limiting. Whether through the lens of curiosity or contempt, they distort who we are and what we can be. Stereotypes don't just misrepresent us — they confine us. They shape how others see us, and eventually, how we see ourselves.
This series will bring together eight recent immigrants from diverse cultural backgrounds — who have experienced the sting of such labels. Through these portraits, we expose the stereotypes they have endured, and respond to them with defiance, vulnerability, humor, or pride. Each image carries not only the mark of harm but also the power of reclaiming one's story.
To stereotype is to simplify. To photograph — with care — is to restore complexity.
This series is not a catalogue of suffering. It is a call to look deeper, to question the ideas we inherit, and to recognize the humanity behind the assumptions. In a time of growing polarization and cultural misunderstanding, I believe art can build bridges. And photography — with its ability to freeze both pain and dignity — can become a quiet form of resistance.
Jerhome, 38 years old
In Europe for 11 years. He lives with his wife and two children.
Salyme, 30 years old
In Europe for 10 years. Single, surrounded by many friends.
Why Nudity?
Clothing is not neutral. It carries markers of class, culture, religion, profession — even how we are expected to behave. When we meet someone, we often see their outfit before we see their eyes.
In this series, I chose to strip away those social codes.
Nudity allows me to photograph the person, not their status.
No uniforms, no brands, no roles — just skin, presence, and vulnerability. It is a way to return to something essential: beyond origin, beyond language, beyond stereotype, we are all human.
As an Asian photographer, this choice also speaks to a personal revolt.
One of the enduring stereotypes placed on East Asian people — especially men — is that we are not sexual, not desirable, not expressive.
By reclaiming sensuality and the body, I refuse that narrative.
I show what we were told we could not be.
This nudity is not about provocation. It is about truth.
Chengyen, 30 years old
In Europe for 5 years. Newly in a relationship with a local.
Wissam, 26 years old
Grew up in France with only her mother by her side. Since her mother’s passing, she carries that legacy forward — claiming her freedom and independence.
Why the ‘Criminal Look’?
In this series, I’ve chosen to photograph my models in a visual style that evokes mugshots — not because they are criminals, but because they are often seen that way.
Every person in these images is decent, dignified, and courageous. But because of where they come from — their skin color, their accent, their clothing, or their passport — they have been treated, at times, differently.
Not as neighbors, not as equals, but as suspects.
The “blooded” or marked visual style is not a celebration of violence — it is a way to reveal the violence of perception.
The hidden violence of being followed in a store.
Of hearing “China virus” on the bus.
Of having your neighborhood called a “no-go zone.”
Of watching people flinch when you speak your language.
This visual language is a metaphor for what stereotypes do to us:
They injure. They stain. They leave traces.
And yet — despite that — every face in these photos looks back.
They stand.
They endure.
They continue to live, to build, to give.
They fight, quietly or boldly, for a place in a society that too often sees them first as a threat.
This is not a photo series about guilt.
It is a portrait of resilience in the face of misjudgment.
Of lives wrongly labeled — but never erased.
More photos coming soon.
Open to collaborations with galleries, publishers, and inspiring models.