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TECNO has teamed up with internationally acclaimed visual artist Angélica Dass for a new two-year portrait project called “100 Portraits of Becoming.” The project was launched in Hong Kong on September 28, 2026, and will bring together 100 people from Kenya, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, and Brazil. It will feature 100 portraits and personal stories, with each portrait focusing on an individual rather than treating them as a representative of a country, culture, generation, or social group.
Exploring Identity Beyond Labels
“100 Portraits of Becoming” looks at how people define themselves through their choices, experiences, changes, and personal growth. The project explores identity beyond social labels, cultural expectations, stereotypes, and fixed categories. It also looks at the growing role of technology and AI in photography, facial recognition, representation, and categorization.
The project builds on TECNO’s work in inclusive imaging, including its Universal Tone technology, which is designed to represent different skin tones more naturally. With this project, TECNO is extending that idea beyond skin-tone representation to focus on the individual stories behind the images.
Dass photographed the participants using TECNO smartphones. Her approach focuses on listening to people, building trust, and understanding their experiences before creating their portraits. She says meaningful portraits begin with human connection, while the camera acts as a tool for sharing those encounters.
Kenya Opens the Global Project
The first chapter takes place in Kenya, featuring 20 people and their personal stories. The stories explore success, career choices, opportunity, community, belonging, and personal growth.
One participant, Alex Mutua Muli, saw farmers in his community struggle to find reliable markets for their produce. Instead of leaving for a larger city, he chose to stay and co-founded Goshen Farm Exporters to connect local farmers with larger markets.
Alexander Odhiambo and his friends built a software company from a small apartment in Nairobi. The company later expanded into African markets and created opportunities for local talent. His story focuses on creating opportunities rather than waiting for them.
Meanwhile, Jelimo Cheboi started skateboarding in 2022 and co-founded GirlSkate Nairobi after finding limited space for women in the scene. What began as a WhatsApp group developed into a community where girls and women can skate, connect, and express themselves.
Philippines Chapter to Explore “Beyond Many Labels”
The Philippines will be the second chapter, featuring another 20 individuals, including working solo mothers and people whose lives are connected to solo parenthood. The chapter will look beyond labels such as “single mother,” “breadwinner,” and “strong woman.”
It will explore self-growth, relationships, ambitions, family, work, everyday choices, and the Filipino concept of “diskarte”, the ability to adapt, make practical choices, and find ways forward through everyday challenges.
Five Countries, 100 Individual Stories
Following Kenya and the Philippines, the project will move to Saudi Arabia later in 2026, followed by Türkiye and Brazil in 2027. Across two years, TECNO and Dass aim to create a collection of 100 portraits that presents 100 different individuals and 100 different stories.
The Kenya chapter was photographed using the TECNO CAMON 50 Ultra 5G, while the upcoming Philippines chapter is connected with the TECNO CAMON Slim 5G.
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