‘AMWB’ is an ongoing visual research into the perception and biases that exist in relation to migration within Europe (Schengenzone).

By photographing a wide variety of people and places in the trail of migration, distinctions tend to blur, making it more difficult for viewers to trust their first impressions, perception or their media-trained instincts.

Through photography Ans Brys attempts to create a visual unanimity and to rehumanize the people being photographed, no matter who they are. In the end we all have to eat, sleep, love, shower, travel. We all want freedom and safety.

“Alle Menschen werden Brüder” (All people become Brothers) is an extract from the European anthem, referring to the brotherhood of a united nation.

It is precisely this unity that is lacking in the European approach to the influx of refugees, resulting in a humanitarian crisis.

I'm hungry is a collective project that originated at the very beginning of the mandatory lockdown.

Suddenly rush and deadlines came to an end and the sun turned the empty streets soft and warm. For the first time, Ans Brys pointed her camera at what she loves most: her ugly neighborhood, her living environment and her son. The latter, who was 8 at the start of the pandemic, produced the most wonderful quotes, which she combined with her images. In this way mother and son built a new world together.

"I'm hungry" refers to his most common quote, but also to the hunger for physical contact that was inevitable.

On April 27 of 2012, a man was found dead in a ditch next to a road about 40 km outside of St. Petersburg, Russia. The corpse showed signs of a violent death and next to his body a passport, little money, a golden wedding ring and his watch were found.

The man was a Belgian citizen and his family reported him missing 3 weeks earlier.

That man was my best friend. That man was my father.

Book publication expected in 2024.

Brussels residents in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in March 22, 2016.

Series of portraits, commissioned by NRC Handelsblad.

With a cumulation of unfavourable climatological and geographical factors that annually causes three quarters of the country to overflow, Bangladesh is one of the least liveable areas.

Furthermore, the food deficit and a lack of hygiene, health care and decent education make for a dead-end future, while the country is faced with a rising population density and an increasing lack of provisions.

In a patriarchal society under an extreme Muslim fundamentalists dominance, women are pushed into a subservient position, denying them any form of education, personal development or freedom of speech.

Girls often face assault and sexual violence within their own family, sometimes at an extremely young age. Due to a lack of education and means, they frequently end up in the streets or in prostitution or are married off at a very early age.

Many young girls work as domestic helpers in richer households, where rape and mutilation by the man of the house is part of the daily routine.

For disabled children, especially girls, the living conditions are even harder. Because of the shame and the stigma that they carry, most of them are abandoned or even killed by their own family. Deprived of any possible social or educational contact, they are condemned to a life in the streets and the sewers of the bigger cities.

Moreover, these children are often recruited to beg and are mutilated or blinded with sulphuric or nitric acid, in order to make more money.

Each year, the Baptist Mission Integrated School (BMIS) offers shelter and education to about 80 blind or visually impaired girls between the age of 5 and 18, making the school unique in Bangladesh.

Regardless of background or religion, these girls are given a chance to develop within a protected community. Every day they are educated a few hours in Braille, while the rest of the day is filled with tasks such as cooking, cleaning and washing.

Despite the excellent work of the institute, there is an undeniable atmosphere of boredom and loneliness. The girls often aimlessly walk around in circles back and forth or sit shaking quietly in a corner. They seem to wait for something to break the rut. For something to take them out of the darkness.

Selection of portraits made for NRC Handelsblad, De Tijd, De Morgen and Vrij Nederland.

Selection of portraits made for NRC Handelsblad, The New York Times, Middelheim Museum, Triggerfinger, Meuris and Noordkaap.

In a world where concrete has displaced nature, large buildings rise above the horizon.

When building was stopped abruptly, an eternal construction site is created. Although declared uninhabited, human beings will remain to engage in these structures.

That's when GTI's (Grands Travaux Inutiles) prove their utility elsewhere.