1-2: Chronology

According to the indications of Gilles Porte, the chronology of his work is as follows.

September 2005
First "bonhomme" (first human figure drawing) made with a white pencil on a black paper by Syrine Porte, two years and eleven month old.

April 2006
170 children of a preschool in Paris create their selfportraits, and Gilles takes their portraits (photographs). Thus, 170 diptychs are cerated.

August 2007
Owing to the NGO "Médecins Sans Frontières", Gilles continues his approach (selfportrait using a black paper and a white pencil) in Kenya with children of the Masai and children of the slums of Nairobi.

November 2007
While shooting a film in Egypt, Gilles distributes black papers and white pencils to children in the streets of Cairo.

February 2008
Owing to the NGO "Clowns Sans Frontières", Gilles continues his journey in some of the orphanages of Moldavia.

September 2008
First exhibition entitled "Syrine, Ibrahim, Malo et tous les autres" ("Syrine, Ibrahim, Malo and All the Others") on the grids of the preschool in Paris where all had begun. The French commission for UNESCO and "La Ligue des Droits de l’Homme" join the project as partners.

November 2008
Owing to the NGO "Solidarité Laïque", Gilles continues the work in Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Benin and Senegal.

Janvier 2009
During an evaluation for a film shooting in South-Est Asia, Gilles distributes black papers and white pencils to children in Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Cambodia.

Mars 2009
On occasion of the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Gédéon Programmes Production and S’Imagine Films Production produce a programm for Arte TV entitled "Portraits / Autoportraits" (Portraits – Selfportraits). In the course of this production, Gilles films children through a large glass, while they draw, freely, themselves. In such a way, he documents more than 600 children of 21 countries (c. 30 children per country), who cannot read and write.

April 2009
UNICEF joins the project of Gilles as a partner.

October 2009
Publication of the book "Portraits / Autoportraits", Editions du Seuil, Paris.

November 2009
One thousand diptychs of children below age of 6 celebrate the 20th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in the streets of Paris.
Simultaneously, 23 exhibitions were hold in France, as well as four others in four different countries and continents – Sri Lanka (Asia), Kenya (Africa), Colombia (South America) and Asustralie (Australia-Oceania.
80 short films entitled "Portraits / Autoportraits" were broadcasted on TV5 Monde, Gulli and Arte, accessible in 40 countries.

December 2009
Owing to the NGO partners, the drawings of the children "come home" in the form of exhibitions to some of the countries of their origins, as is the case for Sri Lanka where ... among the communities of the Tamil, the Christian, the Muslim and the Buddhists.

May 2009
The project "Portraits / Autoportrais" is placed under the official patronage of UNESCO by Irina Bokova, its president.

January 2011
First screening of the film "Dessine-toi" ("Draw Yourself") realized by Gilles, showing children of five continents drawing themselves, without any commentary but accompanied by a music which was composed by the clarinetist Louis Sclavis.

February 2011
The Swiss scientist Dieter Maurer contacts Gilles and asks for an authorisation to investigate drawings and films made around the world.

December 2011
Publication of a DVD case, including "Portraits / Autoportraits" and the film "Dessine-toi". October 2011
The United States of America are the 38th country included into the work of Gilles.

2012
Setup of a project of an extensive exhibition including all drawings collected around the world, documenting what can happen if children who cannot read and write draw themselves, freely, using the time they need, and without intervention of somebody ....