l'association Solenciel

A photographic project on the reconstruction journeys of people who have been victims of prostitution, by Steve Fiehl, on view from 4 to 28 November, in connection with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. With the Maison des réfugiés.

In France, an estimated 40,000 people are victims of prostitution. Many of them are women from West Africa or Eastern Europe, recruited and then exploited by human trafficking networks.

Founded in Grenoble in 2017, the association Solenciel helps people who have been victims of prostitution regain, through employment, a dignified and chosen life.

It offers them an employment contract in stepping-stone jobs (cleaning, contract catering), combined with personalised social and professional support over 24 months: help finding housing, assistance with asylum procedures, psychological support, training… Employment is the starting point of their rebuilding, and the support enables them to settle in for the long term.

Nearly 200 women supported by the association have left prostitution since its creation. Solenciel is now present in Grenoble, Lyon, Toulouse, Nantes and Nanterre.

Carried out from November 2024 to December 2025 in Grenoble, this photographic project explores the long inner journey these women have travelled: a story of violence and destruction of their identity, followed by patient reconstruction, in order to heal multiple traumas and become actors in their own lives.

All outdoor images were taken in the streets of Grenoble, particularly in the areas where prostitution takes place, or in the surrounding region. Some of these women chose to remain anonymous and asked that their portraits not allow them to be recognised.

Studio and outdoor work was chosen in order to offer a neutral setting. One woman, however, agreed to have her portrait taken in her first apartment in France, the starting point of her new life.

Steve Fiehls Trained in 2018 at the International Center of Photography (New York), Steve has since devoted himself to social photography projects that explore, through intimate portraits, questions of fragility and resilience.