Through his travels, Martin became fascinated by tourists taking photos in front of tourist places. From the moment that traveling photography came in, being photographed in specific places became a phenomenon. 

During a week-long trip to Köln, he decided to embrace this ritual that he never fully understood and perform as the ultimate tourist. Equipped with an I love Köln T-shirt and a small digital camera, Martin visited the most popular tourist attractions and asked strangers to take his photo in front of them. 

The pictures are screenprinted by Martin on typical souvenir objects to be found in tourist shops — objects that we bring home as the trophy of our trip. In the same function as the photograph, They prove that we have been there.
By having strangers taking the photos, Martin is not the only one performing. He is also making them active participants in the work.

It is a collaborative process between the strangers who document him as a tourist and Martin who turns the proof images into artifacts of tourism.

‘Cheeeese!!!’ is a project that explores the tradition of tourist photography, the commercialization of traveling, and the performative act of visiting places.