




A visual documentation of my maternal family, all living with Trichoepithelioma, a condition, hereditary in their case, that presents as small benign tumors on the face among other things.
Trichoepithelioma is a very rare condition and one that most average Nigerians have never even heard of, as such, each of the subjects have at different times faced varying levels of discrimination and ostracism as a result of their facial features.
Captured from a close observer’s point of view, the photographer, being a sibling but not possessing the distinguishing facial features that most of their extended maternal family do, identified an information gap where the condition is concerned.
This (ongoing) project is intended to document the subjects with portraiture, and further document their individual and collective perspectives on what it’s like to live with a visible difference, in Nigeria.
A core pillar of this project is using photographic portraits to create awareness on these conditions and the lived experiences of those who have them, especially as a way to mitigate the ignorance of the general public on these conditions and improve the manner in which those living with Neurofibromatosis and Trichoepithelioma are perceived and treated in society.
Particularly timely with the resurfacing of ‘mpox’ in Nigeria which these conditions are often mistaken for.







