Schnappschuss: Kings and Queens by L?on Hendrickx

Leon Hendrickx

Freedom, acceptance and self-realization

Even if his pictures often look like snapshots, they are planned down to the smallest detail. The very different appearance and the resulting effect of the two personalities in the same body is enormous. The subsequent image processing creates the illusion of a real encounter between the different people. This not only creates great amazement in the neutral viewer, but also triggers strong emotions in the artists depicted. Of course, such an encounter remains more of a nice idea than an actual reality. In a way, however, these meetings do somehow take place, because both (or all, if more than one) personalities move in the same body. The photographer wonders: "Can others feel sympathy for drag artists when they look at the photos? Does it create understanding, or do they even recognize a connection to themselves in some way?" The images shown could represent freedom, acceptance, self-realization and being true to oneself. These are all complex and diverse qualities that shape a person and ultimately make them unique. All of this can be seen in a single picture. An experience that the person has never seen before.

Drag queens are men who like to portray a female role. They put on eye-catching and elaborate make-up, wear female clothing and deliberately exaggerate a woman's behavior in a humorous way. Parodying celebrities is another characteristic of drag. Fancy stage names are also a must for the role. Drag queens are usually portrayed as very strong personalities and leave a tough and self-confident impression. Drag should be seen as a symbol of humanity, which above all stands for acceptance. "Everyone should be able to be their own self," says L?on about this. If you just casually look at his pictures, the question of who the man next to the drag queen is will often arise among the uninformed. On closer inspection, however, it becomes clear that it is one and the same person in the pictures. The impressive image editing skills create an almost surreal-looking composition.

Leon Hendrickx

Two personalities, one individual

Dutch photographer L?on Hendrickx has created a very interesting project. He is fascinated by the different personality traits that make up each of us. Drag Queens (and Kings) are the best example for him to portray exactly these multiple characteristics. He portrays two people who are barely recognizable as the same person. The project started in 2015 in Amsterdam with Micha & Snorella. He or she has been L?on's right-hand man ever since, ensuring that each shot and each individual is the true representation as he photographs. "My alter ego is a carefully constructed character. In my photos, I see two parts of myself: a tough, flamboyant woman holding a little boy," Snorella said. L?on was interested in bringing these personalities together to create an individual.

Leon Hendrickx

The Kings & Queens project is not yet finished

The Kings & Queens project is not yet finished. L?on plans to continue the project and publish a book on the subject. The publication date is set for October 2020. The hoped-for goal is to transcend even the LGBT and gender discussion with his images, so that everyone is encouraged to think about their own interrelated characters and facets.