A 14-year long quest for the face-tattooed women of the Chin in the remotest parts of Burma (Myanmar).A life changing journey to tell an untold story of beauty and belonging.
My name is Jens Uwe Parkitny and I live and work in Burma (Myanmar).
Since 1999, I have been exploring the remotest corner of the country with my camera.
In 2001, I met a Chin woman with a traditional facial tattoo for the first time.
The first Chin woman with a facial tattoo that I met: Daw Sheing Peing from the Yindu Dai, Kanpelet, 2001.
This encounter changed my life profoundly. It put me on a 14-year quest to find the last Chin women with facial tattoos and portrait them with my camera.
My quest (2001-2014) led me to Southern Chin and Rakhine State in Western Myanmar. Map source: “Marked for Life - Myanmar’s Chin Women and their facial tattoos”, Kerber 2017 - All rights reserved.
Over time, I compiled a unique portfolio that visually tells an untold story of an ancient beauty ideal and a vanishing tattoo tradition. It is the story of the women of the Southern Chin that live in remote parts of Western Burma (Myanmar).
Laytu Chin, Western Rakhine, Burma (Myanmar)
My photographic work has been shown at international photo festivals and exhibited in museums in New Zealand, Switzerland and Germany as well as in galleries and cultural institutions in France, Hong Kong and Myanmar. The Foreign Correspondent Club Thailand (FCCT) has also exhibited a selected portfolio of my Chin women portraits and invited me to talk about my quest.
Pre-Opening view of the Exhibition “Blood Faces”, featuring my Chin women portraits and textiles at the Pataka Museum in Porirua, New Zealand, 2014. The exhibition ran for six weeks and attracted 36,700 visitors.
My portraits keep inspiring travelers, artists, designers, journalists and photographers alike that then come to visit Myanmar, discovering the unique cultural traditions of the Southern Chin tribes that I had the privilege to visit and explore a decade earlier, long before the country opened up to the world.
Laytu Chin, Western Rakhine, Burma (Myanmar)
I created illustrations of all the facial tattoo patterns I captured, in order to show their differences and uniqueness.
Facial Tattoo Patterns of the Highland Chins - Copyright © 2017 Jens Uwe Parkitny. All rights reserved.
Facial Tattoo Patterns of the Lowland Chins - Copyright © 2017 Jens Uwe Parkitny. All rights reserved.
The illustration portfolio in itself is a complete body of work and the first of its kind worldwide that documents the tattoo patterns of the Southern Chin groups. It has anthropological relevance and complements my portraits of these amazing women.
My BOOKS
Helping me with book sales whenever the occasion arises: my daughters Ingyin and Myayi.
“Marked for Life - Myanmar’s Chin Women And Their Facial Tattoos”, Kerber 2017, ISBN 978-3-7356-0355-5, Co-published with Goethe Institute Myanmar, the German Culture Institution.
What makes this book unique is the combination of portraits, tattoo illustrations and close-up shots of Chin textiles. It includes contributions from the world’s leading tattoo anthropologist, Dr. Lars Krutak, and from Singapore’s top Fashion Designer, Lisa Crosswhite (aka Lisa Von Tang). The preface is written by Bestseller author Jan-Philipp Sendker.
“Blood Faces – Through the lens: Chin Women of Myanmar”, Flame of he Forest, Singapore 2007, ISBN 978-981-4193-38-2
Out of Print. I have few personal copies left and if anyone is interested in a signed copy, please get in touch.
My Exhibition
CATALOGUE
Published by the Bavarian State Museum of Ethnology, Munich 2010, Germany, on the occasion of my special exhibition “Chin Women of Burma and Their Facial Tattoos: a Portrait” (June 16 - October 31, 2010). featuring 26 x portraits from my series. It was the world’s first museum exhibition on Chin Facial Tattooing.
The exhibition catalogue features 26 exhibits and tells the story of my quest in English and German. It can be ordered directly from me for USD 35 USD incl shipping.
Speaking ENGAGEMENT
I am available for speaking engagements. My track record includes engagements by numerous museums, cultural institutions, galleries and foreign embassy clubs, to present my work and personal story. Interested? Inquire now.
My fine ART PRINTS
I sell customised fine art prints, using a 100 % (true) natural colour pigment ink as well as the finest papers: Hahnemühle Fine Art Papers (meaning: museum quality, archivable, no colour fading). Customised print sizes from 35 cm x 35 cm up to 150 cm x 150 cm . I work with a fine art digital master printer in Hong Kong and ship to collectors, museums and cultural institutions worldwide. I donate 50 % of the net proceeds to support local community projects in Myanmar. Interested in purchasing a print? Visit my Shop.
Laytu Chin, Western Rakhine, Burma (Myammar)
Based in AUSTRALIA and interested in my work and in purchasing a print? Please get in touch with Daniela Scala McMurdo, interior designer and decorator of exclusive residential projects, who represents me and my portfolio exclusively in Down Under.
Today, I write and publish frequently about Chin facial tattooing and have created my own little ethnological research center which is located at Loikaw Lodge by the Lake, a small boutique hotel that my wife and I built and manage in Kayah State, one of the most ethnical diverse regions in Burma.
Together we go on field trips whenever the time allows and arrange visits to ethnic communities for our guests, many photographers and videographers among them.
Due to the current situation in Myanmar, we can’t operate normal but hope to be able to do so again in the not too distant future.
I’m also working on a number of new photographic projects that range from portraying the last generation of tribal women in Kayah State to portraying the last generation of Bama and Kayin men with traditional leg tattoos.
MY NEW BOOK: published in Yangon in January 2024 and launched on the occasion of the “Icons of Courage - the last Kayin men with traditional leg tattoos” Solo Exhibition at The Round House | The Culture Hub (Jan 27-30). The book is currently only sold in Yangon. I take direct orders and can ship word wide.
Jens Uwe Parkitny (photo courtesy of Swe Yi Myat), November 2020.
I was born in Germany and have a background in commercial publishing, journalism and digital marketing. As a journalist, I worked on assignments in 25 countries, before zeroing in on Asia, where I spent the last 16 years. I lived and worked in Hong Kong and Singapore for international corporations, before moving to Rangoon (Yangon), Burma.