1/9
1/9
Body Language
Body Language
Forrest Walker
September 12, 2025
Tokyo, Japan
In his Body Language series, Forrest Walker deals with the almost unconscious movements and correlations between people in public spaces. The images reveal authentic moments of daily life between connectedness and isolation. Rather than showing the people in their entirety, the photographer concentrates on the limbs with which we move through the world – touching, holding, pushing away or communicating without words. By leaving out the heads and faces of his protagonists, something universal remains: the language of movement, body posture and proximity. At times humorous, at times confusing, the pictures play with visual illusions, overlaps and happenstances.
The street photographer offers insight into why the series speaks through instinct rather than identity, why he finds that life unfolds in unexpected ways, and how he approaches photography.
What is the idea behind this selection taken from your series Body Language?
I wanted to explore how body language alone can tell a story, without needing faces, context, or narrative. To me, they show how even the most ordinary street corner can produce images that border on abstraction or dream. The photos in this series, which are currently in the process of being published as a book, are also taken from around the world. In my photography work, I’ve covered 130 major cities across 88 countries, and I use the expansive variety of this to incorporate into the selection of photos in the series, to really show all life’s body language in limbo.
The protagonists in this selection make twisted movements and almost surreal poses that seem bizarre.
I am looking for positions and movements that look different and stand out. I’m more chasing instinct, ambiguity, and fleeting moments where life’s choreography breaks away from the norm and both says and asks more. That fraction of a second that our eyes skip over, but when frozen give something unique and, within that, says something and asks questions, giving mystery to life while reflecting upon something within it. By freezing these moments, the photos expose gestures and relationships that feel alien but are entirely real – the kind of accidental poetry you only find in real life, wihout staging.
Why are no faces are visible? Was that an aesthetic choice or for data protection reasons?
The absence of faces was an aesthetic choice, not a legal one; but that aspect can be an added bonus since much of my other work is filled with faces and getting inside life. This was a different approach than normal for me, while still including an eye for the surreal. But I’m not hiding identities here – I’m emphasizing universality while including individuality. By removing faces, the images become more about the language of the body – about movement, tension, posture, and gesture.
How do you hope to have the photos perceived?
The photos invite the viewer to project themselves into the frame. It’s no longer “this person on that street”, but a more open and emotional reading of human interaction, disconnection, or surreality. The lack of faces also contributes to a certain strangeness and mystery – the feeling that something is missing or off – which fits the mood of the work and can add questions that bring focus to possible answers within the body language.
Carla Susanne ErdmannThe street photographer offers insight into why the series speaks through instinct rather than identity, why he finds that life unfolds in unexpected ways, and how he approaches photography.
What is the idea behind this selection taken from your series Body Language?
I wanted to explore how body language alone can tell a story, without needing faces, context, or narrative. To me, they show how even the most ordinary street corner can produce images that border on abstraction or dream. The photos in this series, which are currently in the process of being published as a book, are also taken from around the world. In my photography work, I’ve covered 130 major cities across 88 countries, and I use the expansive variety of this to incorporate into the selection of photos in the series, to really show all life’s body language in limbo.
The protagonists in this selection make twisted movements and almost surreal poses that seem bizarre.
I am looking for positions and movements that look different and stand out. I’m more chasing instinct, ambiguity, and fleeting moments where life’s choreography breaks away from the norm and both says and asks more. That fraction of a second that our eyes skip over, but when frozen give something unique and, within that, says something and asks questions, giving mystery to life while reflecting upon something within it. By freezing these moments, the photos expose gestures and relationships that feel alien but are entirely real – the kind of accidental poetry you only find in real life, wihout staging.
Why are no faces are visible? Was that an aesthetic choice or for data protection reasons?
The absence of faces was an aesthetic choice, not a legal one; but that aspect can be an added bonus since much of my other work is filled with faces and getting inside life. This was a different approach than normal for me, while still including an eye for the surreal. But I’m not hiding identities here – I’m emphasizing universality while including individuality. By removing faces, the images become more about the language of the body – about movement, tension, posture, and gesture.
How do you hope to have the photos perceived?
The photos invite the viewer to project themselves into the frame. It’s no longer “this person on that street”, but a more open and emotional reading of human interaction, disconnection, or surreality. The lack of faces also contributes to a certain strangeness and mystery – the feeling that something is missing or off – which fits the mood of the work and can add questions that bring focus to possible answers within the body language.
ALL IMAGES ON THIS PAGE: © Forrest Walker
EQUIPMENT: Leica Q-P with Summilux 28 f/1.7 Asph, M9, Summilux-M 35 f/1.4 Asph
LLFI 6.2025+-
.. More
Forrest Walker+-
Born in Montana, USA, Walker graduated in Economics from the University of Oregon
in Eugene. After initial attempts in fashion he turned to street photography. His work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Italian Street Photo Festival in 2022, and has received awards such as the LensCulture Street Photography Award in 2023. He had recently published a photo book, Populace. More
Tokyo, Japan
Karachi, Pakistan
Cebu City, Philippines
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
Vienna, Austria
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Naples, Italy
Tokyo, Japan
Istanbul, Turkey