Amsterdam is a city rich in history, culture and freedom with a progressive, modern and reformist soul, but it also hides a lot of contrasts. Mees Peijnenburg, a Dutch photographer and filmmaker, knows it very well. It is his home city, a place of freedom and contradictions.
In the course of his artistic research, between photography, film and advertising, Mees has come into contact with the male world of Amsterdam’s sex workers, got to know the stories of those who belong to it and so decided to tell them through his lens. The photographic series in which he talks about them is called PAYBOY. It is a collection of intimate and personal portraits, a side story of the Red Light District.
When you visit Amsterdam, you will notice that the sex industry is a very visible part of the city’s daily life. The world of sex workers is controlled and regulated by the government, and the women who live in it live it with awareness and autonomy. The other side of the coin, however, the one that is almost never told, is the male equivalent, the one that does not take place in the public eye, the one that is hidden and less known.
Mees Peijnenburg learned about it, decided to tell its story and focused his artistic research on giving a face to a profession that is a victim of gender underrepresentation and stigma. PAYBOY is not a documentary photographic series, but an intimate and revealing account that sheds light on a generally oppressed and underexposed aspect.
PAYBOY is a photographic series that combines art and storytelling. Mees’ photographs immortalize some of the men in their workplaces while telling personal, special and meaningful stories. There are those who do this work for personal pleasure, those who see it as a way of expressing themselves, for others it is exclusively an economic issue, but there are also those who have experienced violence and exploitation.
Mees enters into the hearts, lives and homes of people with very different histories, creating a collaborative, sensitive and educational photographic project that tells the story of a sensitive and controversial subject.
See the shots here and follow Mees Peijnenburg on Instagram and on his personal website to discover more of his work.
Words by Federica Cimorelli
