MR. PEARL

You can't choose how you're born, but you can choose how to live your life.

Thailand seems to be the most tolerant place for the LGBTIQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer) community. However, tolerance doesn’t mean acceptance. For the LGBTIQ people who have already revealed their gender identity tend to often be the ones that have been mistreated by the general public and the media due to the lack of knowledge and understanding.

In Thai society, transmen are still in the shadow of ‘tomboy’ culture. While the terms of ‘transwoman’ and ‘tomboy’ have been well known among Thai people for many decades, the term of ‘transman’ only been introduced about 5 years ago. “Phu Chai Kham Phej” is a Thai term that has been translated from a western term ‘transman’ which means a transgender person who was assigned female at birth but whose gender identity is that of a man.

“Mr. Pearl” is a story of Kanattsanan “Mukk” Dokput, 32, who live true to his heart. Mukk always knows that he was born in the wrong body, so he decided to make to change. This is a journal of the transition of himself and also the society’s.

“Mr. Pearl” photography project is ongoing project started in July 2015.