Denise Lobont

Flower Sellers | This project documents one of the oldest historical spots in Bucharest, essential to the Romanian cultural heritage and history alike: the Coșbuc Flower-Market. The main focus of this series is the figure of the male flower seller whose machistic traits and expression are shown in sharp contrast with the sensitive, delicate craft of floristry. Even though showing off a blustering bravado, becoming friends with them I discovered that under this manly harness their emotions were resonating with the bouquets sold. Highlighting the complexity of human nature and the redundancy of gender norms, the documentary is to be read as a visual exploration of toxic masculinity and a tribute to male mental health, which encourages soft emotions associated with feminine behaviour not to be repressed by men. deniselobont.com