The most symbolic display of love is the grazing of lips, the molten heat that feels like sugar cubes melting in the mouth. There is nothing more perfect than tasting another pair of lips and letting the world slip away for just a few precious minutes. It is an idyllic, intimate touch, and as the kiss progresses, it becomes harder to breathe and the pleasure is heightened.
This is how I perceive a kiss from the person who I long to share my body and energy with. The gentle murmurs, the restless body movements, and the lips dancing a complex choreography of unbridled desire and tenderness make up the perfect kiss. Photographer Ignacio Lehmann has decided to share his project with millions of people and show through the power of photography one of the most beautiful expressions of love: a kiss.
He travelled around the world and captured over 1,000 couples kissing in a raw, authentic, and spontaneous way, showing that love is the same no matter where you are.
Amsterdam (2013)
Argentina (2015)
Barcelona (2012)
Barcelona (2015)
New York (2015)
The photographer called the photo series 100 World Kisses, and defined himself as a “person hunting 100 kisses in each city around the world.”
New York (2014)
Bogota (2014)
Buenos Aires (2015)
Buenos Aires (2015)
Buenos Aires (2015)
Between 2012 and 2016, Lehmann has successfully captured the aura that surrounds couples that are kissing. It is a halo of love that shines through in the most intimate way and is beautifully transmitted in the photographs he exhibits.
Argentina (2015)
Buenos Aires (2015)
United States (2014)
Colombia (2014)
Cartagena (2016)
What began as an adventure for Lehmann has ended as one of his most important works. It all began in the chaotic streets of New York, where he realized the power of each portrait. His first picture was of a gay couple kissing on the subway on 50th Street.
Emboldened, he decided to travel the world and in each city capture 100 kisses, always following the premise that these kisses would have to be on the streets. This project may appear simple, but it is far more complicated to execute. Ignacio explains, “I walked many hours with my camera photographing street kisses regardless of people’s sexual preference, skin color, religious beliefs, or cultural origins.”
United States (2015)
This is the picture that inspired Ignacio Lehmann to start this project.
United States (2016)
United States (2012)
United States (2012)
The objective of this Argentinian artist was to capture in a natural way the cultural diversity that is attached to kissing. As he wandered around the busy streets of the most important cities in the world, he captured couples spellbound by the intimacy.
United States (2015)
Barcelona (2014)
United States (2016)
Florence (2016)
New York (2016)
“Kissing is great. This may sound corny, but when you kiss you instantly feel better,” he confessed in an interview with Colombian magazine, Cromos. Kissing is the universal way to show affection —no matter where you go, you can find amorous couples locking lips.
United States (2016)
Lima (2015)
Peru (2015)
Exploring 12 countries and over 20 cities, Ignacio has been able to compile an extensive and beautiful photo series. His photographs include stories and experiences from ordinary people from New York, Mexico, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Cartagena, Barcelona, among other places.
Mexico (2013)
New York (2012)
New York (2012)
New York (2012)
New York (2013)
Many wonder how has he been able to capture so many couples right at the exact moment of kissing. Lehmann has developed a strategy that is based on taking the picture and then approaching the couples to explain the nature of the project. In other occasions he will approach people on the street and ask them to kiss, so he will capture the moment.
New York (2012)
New York (2013)
United States (2016)
United States (2016)
United States (2016)
Besides this collection, the Argentinian artist has a Facebook fan page with over 1 million followers. Independent from 100 World Kisses Lehmann has collaborated with magazines like Vogue, Glamour, and People and TV channels like CNN, ABC News, Telemundo and Univision. He has also dipped his fingers in journalism, working alongside distinguished papers like La Stampa, La República, El Universal, El País, and other media platforms.
United States (2016)
New York (2015)
Paris (2012)
Tokyo (2013)
New York (2013)
He has compiled over 1,500 photographs, and his journeys have left behind precious experiences and beautiful life stories. In his trip to Japan he was able to meet a couple that had survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima. For him, this was one of the most touching stories he heard in his travels.
Rome (2014)
Buenos Aires (2015)
Paris (2015)
United States (2014)
Paris (2012)
These couples abandon reason and reality and plunge into a secret world of intimacy. They may be surrounded by a crowd, but everything fades into the background, and all that matters is the sensation of the kiss. The striking images are irresistible for the followers and for the people that have participated in the project.
The kisses are the protagonists in these photographs, and everything is so entrancing and beautiful that for a moment you feel it has all been orchestrated. The couples overpower the busy surroundings and awaken in each of us memories and past sensations. A small smile tugs at your lips, and if you are suddenly overpowered by your feelings, you might have a slight tear in the corner of your eye.
The stories that revolve around each picture are wonderful and painfully nostalgic. A kiss might be a welcome and a hello, or it can be a last goodbye. You might remember the first kiss, but we never know when the last one will ever be.
