How the world welcomes its children.

“364.501 times a day, somewhere in the world, a new life begins and with it a new story. Over the years I have become more and more fascinated by this. Everywhere children are born with their own life story: their own parents and family, their own environment, their own culture, their own place in the world, their own future. The day on which a child is born is a universal happening, of which, as a woman and a mother, I know the experience and the emotions. An occasion which has provided me, as a photographer, with very powerful, pure and always unique pictures. Pictures which intrigued me as a journalist, and always resulted in a single question... Why do we actually bring children into the world? In what kind of world will they grow up? What is their story?”

– Lieve Blancquaert

For this project, Blancquaert visited different countries and cultures. Besides the place of birth, she also captured recurring themes such as maternity wards, family and rituals. The locations she visited include Shanghai in China, Tiberias in Israel, the Sundarbans in India, Atlanta in the US, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Kuwait City in Kuwait, Nairobi in Kenya, Sisimiut in Greenland and Brussels in Belgium.

Birth Day is a part of Lieve Blancquaert’s cycle about important moments in human life: birth (Birth Day), marriage (Wedding Day) and death (Last Days). This project is available as a book and as a documentary series.

You can order the book here: https://hannibalbooks.be/en/birth-day