Laureate Bourse du Talent 2024 : Karla Hiraldo Voleau

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« In the Dominican Republic, abortion is illegal in all circumstances. Women and health professionals are liable to up to two years’ imprisonment for inducing abortion, and up to 20 years’ imprisonment for performing an abortion.

While laws such as «Roe v. Wade» have made headlines in the USA, the recent update of the penal code in the Dominican Republic has reignited the debate: «tres causales» are still not included. These three basic conditions (incest/rape, mother’s life in danger, non-viable fetus) generally justify an abortion in most countries, but in the Dominican Republic, the debate is extremely polarized, overshadowed by misogynistic Christianity and entrenched patriarchy.”

“Numerous exchanges with Dominican activists have revealed that abortion is a common practice despite the ban. The “Doble Moral” project aims to give a voice to Dominican women through their accounts of clandestine abortions, accompanied by powerful, supportive photographic portraits. I’m also working on a series of performances on this theme, to be staged in Dominican public spaces. In 2023, with the support of Pro Helvetia and CNAP, my research began with interviews with dozens of women. Then, thanks to the support of PlaySuisse, I produced a performance in Sto Domingo in June 23, which was presented in August at the Locarno Film Festival.”

I gathered 30 testimonials and took as many self-portraits, some of them anonymous, using mirrors or a remote shutter release. I sought to make the women I met – of all ages and social classes – feel and appear strong, while protecting their anonymity if they needed to. I sometimes inserted myself into the portraits as a gesture of solidarity, ensuring that the relationship between model and photographer was horizontal. Every participant was paid and every collaborator was a woman. ”

Karla Hiraldo Voleau combines photography, writing and performance, often blending images and texts to create personal, narrative works. She tackles several interrelated subjects: in 2018, she began by examining the stereotypes surrounding Latin American men and their hypersexualization, through projects such as Hola Mi Amol and Latin Lover. Then in 2020, she looked at different dating cultures, such as Japan with the project I Have Nothing to Tell You, focusing on young Japanese individuals and their emotional lives..

Often becoming a main character in her series, Karla Hiraldo Voleau engages the viewer mor intimately with the work, revealing the processes behind the scenes and addressing them directly. She likes to take her experiences as a starting point, starting from the closest and then zooming out to address collective questions and issues. In recent works, she has focused on gender and its visual representations, incorporating more performative art, as evidenced by A Man in Public Space (2020) and her latest project, Another Love Story (2022), inspired by a real-life romantic experience.

Since 2024, she has turned her attention to political subjects such as the illegality of abortion in the Dominican Republic and the future of feminism among Italy’s Generation Z. All these portraits and visual experiments contribute to her broader exploration of female gaze.

Karla Hiraldo Voleau holds a Master’s degree in photography from the ECAL School of Art and Design in Lausanne, Switzerland. She published her first photo book ‘Hola Mi Amol’ with Self Publish Be Happy and ECAL in 2019. After several group exhibitions, she saw her first solo show, ‘Another Love Story’, presented at the Maison Européenne de la Photographie in Paris (2022), followed by Photoforum Pasquart in Biel, FotoForum in Bolzano, Italy and ICP in New York (2023). She has been represented by Zurich-based gallery Christophe Guye since 2024.

Site internet : https://khiraldovoleau.com/