What does it mean to be free?

"What does it mean to be free?" is a photographic documentary on the coercive control of domestic violence. The series explores the hold that one person can have on another, through the stories of victims of domestic violence.

What Does It Mean to Be Free? is an artistic documentary on coercive control in domestic abuse.

This work traces the journeys of women who have succeeded in leaving their former partners. The series explores the control one person can exert over another, through the voices of survivors of domestic violence—whether economic, physical, emotional, or sexual—while highlighting the complexity of coercive control.

From these testimonies, both photographic and written, emerge the strength, vitality, and creative force these women reclaim in the aftermath of trauma. After having lived for so long in a cage, I want to photograph them in their reclaimed freedom, while also shedding light on the pain caused by such experiences.

In my artistic process, I accompany these women in a space of healing where they can fully express their vulnerability. I aim to portray them not as victims, but as heroines—highlighting their determination to fight for their right to live and to exist. This work is also a collaboration with them; it is essential to my approach that they actively participate in the creative process. I share their stories and enter into their experiences in order to blend myself into the image.

This is why the choice of analog photography feels natural—intuitive, even. We embrace the magic of medium format and the slowness of the process. The Mamiya becomes part of the space we create together, capturing with softness and clarity the strength of our encounters.

As Anne-Clotilde Ziégler, psychotherapist and author of Why Did I Stay?, writes:
"Victims are not weak. They are no more neurotic than anyone else. They are trapped, and if they manage to escape, it is because they have fought a battle that deserves to be recognized."

While domestic abuse is increasingly discussed in the media, the subject remains taboo and deeply complex. That is why I believe it is urgent to document it in depth. It is also essential to center the voices of those who have lived this reality from the inside, in order to begin to grasp its many facets—without betraying their truth, and without romanticizing it.