BRIGITTE DENCK
Pillangó - Butterfly Man

This analog photo was taken in Hungary in 1989. Many people I met back then gave themselves an animal name as a nickname. This man gave himself the name Pillangó, butterfly in English. At that time, Pillangó had already spent more than half of his life in homes and prisons. As tattoos were forbidden, they were seen as a sign of rebellion. The tattoos on his face, which were engraved using primitive methods, are modeled on a butterfly.
I later found out that he was probably referring to the US film Papillon (1973), which was very popular in Hungary. In this prison drama, the main character has a butterfly tattooed on his chest - a sign of freedom - and is therefore called Papillon.

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