portfolioscross
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

portfolio

Photography

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard

10 min

Discover Sport Friendly by French artist based in Argentina Emilien Buffard. Through a photographic exhibition and an album, the project promotes inclusive sport by highlighting LGBTQI+ sports teams. 

To coincide with the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Emilien Buffard and the Institut français are joining forces to offer an international version of the project. French cultural network abroad will identify and photograph inclusive teams in their cities to create a collaborative album and an international photographic exhibition on inclusive sport. It will be accessible to the entire network in digital format from July 2024. 

Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

2/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

"Sport Friendly" exhibition at the CCCC (Centro del Carmen de Cultura Contemporánea) in Valencia, Spain.

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 2/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

3/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

"I wave the 'Bears' flag on the pitch to make the collective that represents me visible. Being fat and gay is not easy, especially in sport, where we are constantly excluded in the face of hegemonic and athletic bodies, which enjoy more privileges. 

At Defensores, I've found my own space and a place where differences and all corporalities are respected, and where everyone plays. I feel fulfilled, proud and free to show myself as I am." 

Jose - Defensores, City of Buenos Aires 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 3/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

4/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

"From the very first day, when I arrived on the pitch and found myself surrounded by such diversity, I felt the joy of being able to say to myself "this is where I want to be", sharing together this sport that we love so much and that allows us to be. To be is a word with many meanings, but from the moment motherhood came to me, all I could think about is this human being that I carry inside me and who, I hope, will be able to enjoy in the future the opportunity that we all deserve, TO BE OURSELVES." 

Jimena - Angaú Padel, City of Corrientes 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 4/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

5/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

"Joining Bucare Hockey allowed me to heal the trauma of the discrimination I suffered at high school, during PE lessons, for not wanting to play football, which not only made me hate the sport, but also led me to drop out of school. Years later, when I found the courage to finish my studies as a transgender woman, the discrimination against me was even worst. 

Today, not only do I play hockey because I'm passionate about it, but also because I want to show that, however you face life, don't let anyone or anything exclude you from a place or an activity, because we all have the right to fulfil ourselves freely." 

Florencia - Bucare, Rosario 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 5/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

6/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

"For me, pride means being able to SHOW, BE and BECOME, as in this photograph. It's being able to show myself as feminine in masculine, masculine in feminine and, above all, feminine and/or masculine in the fluidity of my gender. To be proud to be able to add all this gender construction to sport, and to feel free to do so. To feel as free, comfortable and accompanied, to the point of being able to pose for a photograph like this." 

Josefo - Todo lo que Esta Bien (TEB), City of Salta 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 6/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

7/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

Exhibition at the Museo Municipal de Arte Moderno in Mendoza, Argentina. 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 7/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

8/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

Exhibition at the French Embassy in Argentina. 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 8/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

9/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

The exhibition has already been shown at the French Embassy in Argentina, in the Alliances Françaises network and by several Instituts français. 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 9/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !
Switch to landscape mode to see the portfolio in full screen.

portfolio

10/11

Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

In addition to the exhibition, French photographer Émilien Buffard is reinterpreting the traditional album of figurines through more than 500 photographed players, 18 inclusive sports associations from all over Argentina, 1 inclusive rugby team from Paris and interviews with Olympic and international athletes whose ambition is to make visible and promote a more inclusive sport world. 

"Sport Friendly", a project by Emilien Buffard 10/11
© Emilien Buffard
Image
Sport Friendly : le terrain de la diversité !

portfolio

Photography

The Institut français and Emilien Buffard

Image
Logo IF + signature

Read the Émilien Buffard interview

Find out more about the Sport Friendly International project proposed by Émilien Buffard and the Institut français to the French cultural network abroad. You will also find all the information you need to present the international exhibition, contribute to the project or set up a new national exhibition.