From Myanmar... with Love - Project (video+photo+answers)

From Myanmar… with Love

60 days. 4 cities. 100 people. One question.

“What is the meaning of love?”

From Myanmar… with Love is a documentary photography and video project created during a 60-day journey across Myanmar in 2014.

The project began in Yangon, where I was struck by the warmth, kindness and openness of the people I encountered in everyday life. Walking through the streets, I saw people welcoming strangers, children laughing in parks, families spending time together, and couples sharing quiet moments by the lakes.

This everyday atmosphere led me to a simple question:

What is love?

I travelled across four cities — Yangon, Bagan, Inle Lake and Mandalay — asking people from different backgrounds to share their own understanding of love.

Across 100 responses, one idea appeared again and again:

Love is kindness. Love is giving. Love is understanding.

The Process

Over 60 days, I travelled through Yangon, Bagan, Inle Lake and Mandalay, photographing and speaking with approximately 100 people.

In each location, I asked the same question:

“What is the meaning of love?”

There was no predetermined answer and no attempt to define love for the participants. The aim was simply to listen and document how people understood and expressed the concept through their own experiences, relationships, beliefs and cultural background.

The photographs, video and recorded responses became a portrait not only of individuals, but also of the different ways love can be understood within a society.

The Aim

The project explores how culture, religion, ethics and social values can influence the way people understand love. It also looks at differences between communities and generations, and how personal circumstances shape the meaning people attach to relationships, family, compassion and responsibility.

Rather than presenting one definition of love, the project brings together a collection of individual voices and perspectives.

Observations

Several recurring themes emerged throughout the project.

• Some younger participants described numerical symbols such as “528” and “1500” in connection with different forms of love, explaining their meanings through Buddhist and cultural interpretations.

• Participants also described different forms of love using distinct terms in the Myanmar language, including “Achi”, associated with romantic love, and “Mitta”, associated with parental, compassionate or loving-kindness relationships.

• Many people described love not simply as an emotion, but as a state of mind expressed through actions, responsibility and understanding.

• One participant reflected:

“If you build love with the heart, it will become your heart. If you build it with the mind, it will be kind to you.”

• In some rural and economically disadvantaged communities, several young people spoke about the challenges of romantic relationships and marriage, particularly in relation to family responsibilities and caring for their parents.

These conversations revealed that love was often understood not only through romantic relationships, but through family, compassion, responsibility, generosity and community.

The Journey

Throughout the journey, I was consistently met with hospitality and generosity. Monks offered tea and fruit. Teachers welcomed me into their homes. Elders shared their thoughts in pagodas and local communities. People who had never met me before were willing to stop, talk and reflect on a deeply personal question.

The project became as much about these encounters as it was about the photographs themselves. 

One moment in particular stayed with me. After I had spent the day asking people what love meant to them, a young girl turned the question back to me:

“What about you? What is the meaning of love for you?”

Until that moment, I had been the person asking the questions. Her question made me realise that the project was never only about discovering how other people defined love. It was also an invitation to question my own understanding of it. 

And perhaps, after all the different answers, the simplest conclusion was:

Love is life. Without life there is no love, and without love there is no life.

Exhibition & Recognition

The project was first presented in Yangon, Myanmar, in 2014, with the support of the European Union Delegation to Myanmar.

On 3 December 2014, a photography exhibition was held, with proceeds donated to a local institution providing educational courses for homeless children.

In 2015, the project received the First Prize in the Video Art category at the International X Edition Florence Biennale in Italy.

The project was subsequently exhibited at the Goethe-Institut in 2016.

Project at a Glance

Title: From Myanmar… with Love
Location: Myanmar
Duration: 60 days
Cities: Yangon · Bagan · Inle Lake · Mandalay
Participants: Approximately 100 people
Format: Photography · Video · Personal testimonies
Created: 2014
Award: First Prize, Video Art — Florence Biennale, 2015
Exhibitions: Yangon, Myanmar (2014) · Goethe-Institut (2016)