Artist Pastes Photos Of Real Women's Eyes Around The World To Show 'Women Are Heroes'

In his beautiful public project called Women are Heroes, French street artist JR pays tribute to women all across the world: With the help of his crew, he pastes images of the eyes and faces of real women onto abandoned buildings and streetcars.

JR wants to draw attention to the women who play essential roles in society, but who are primarily victims of crime, rape, war, political and religious fanaticism.

He posted these photos onto buildings to "giv[e] a female gaze to both the hill and the favela," says his website.

JR writes of the challenges he faces with the project, which started in Rio de Janeiro and has since spread all over the globe, from Sierra Leone to India to Kenya:

We had to adapt to this world where the roofs of houses are made of plastic and children’s revolvers are made of steel. We managed to get by in spite of the steep streets, the unsteady houses, the unpredictable electric cables and the exchanges of gunshots where the bullets sometimes go through several houses at once.

Recently, JR pasted the eyes of women from the slums in Nairobi onto a ship called the CMA CGM MAGELLAN. He posted the photo onto his Instagram account.

The ship has since embarked on a trip across the Mediterranean sea, and the Nairobi woman's eyes are glued to the horizon at all times.

H/T: Huffington Post, Photos Courtesy: JR