Human Canvas: When the Body Becomes a Mirror of Identities A unique photographic immersion by Joaquin Barata in Phnom Penh
- Editorial team
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Plantation Urban Resort & Spa invites the public to a unique visual experience with Human Canvas: Portraits of Identity, a solo exhibition by documentary and travel photographer Joaquin Barata, from 10 September to 19 October 2025, with an opening night scheduled for 10 September.
Through 19 striking portraits taken between 2021 and 2025 in eight countries across Africa, Asia and the Pacific, the exhibition explores the human body as a living canvas. Each image reveals how cultures inscribe stories of belonging and belief on the skin: ancestral body paintings, tattoos, scarifications, adornments and symbolic signs give these faces a profound aesthetic and identity dimension.
Joaquin Barata, a photographer based in Phnom Penh since 2016, shares a quest fuelled by years of wandering and encounters across five continents.
‘Photography was initially a way to document my travels, then it became my reason for travelling,’ he says.
‘It allows me to forge human connections, pass on traditions and preserve stories that are in danger of disappearing with time.’
His work thus proves to be a valuable form of cultural preservation at a time when many of these ancestral expressions are becoming increasingly rare in the face of social change and globalisation. ‘More than just capturing moments, photography is for me an act of safeguarding intangible heritage,’ he adds with conviction.
For the Phnom Penh audience, Human Canvas is an invitation to a visual and emotional journey, a dive into the richness of cultural practices where the body becomes a receptacle of memory and collective identity. The exhibition also offers a reflection on the diversity of ways in which human beings mark their uniqueness and their connection to the community.
Joaquin Barata has made a name for himself on the international scene, exhibiting in the prestigious Atlas of Humanity initiative, with presentations in Paris, Milan, London and New York. His sensitive gaze sheds light on the socio-cultural challenges faced by marginalised communities, highlighting their often overlooked traditions.
Human Canvas: Portraits of Identity is a rare opportunity to immerse yourself in a world where photography dialogues with ethnology and art to celebrate the diversity and beauty of bodies as gateways to others.