Alexis Orosa, Hapa (PEOPLE 2021)

‘Hapa' - once a derogatory term for children of mixed Asian descent. Now, in our society it is a more common but ill-defined, an experienc that is lived between cultural doorways. Half of one, closer to another, an identity that is fraught, but also filled with grace: to peer into one door, to exist in an another. To be hapa is to always look, but not always belong, for some parts to be recognised, and others to fade into the background. And to always be seen by the colour and tone of one's skin, until we are all monochrome, tones of grey until we are all merely human. Alex, half German and half Chinese-Filipino has hair straight and dark from his mother; hands large and strong from his father. But features are just the start, the gateway to many aspects of him that exist between two worlds.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.