Over the last 25 years, French-Canadian photographer François Brunelle has traveled the world photographing around 250 pairs of doppelgängers.
Doppelgängers, which translates from German to “double walker,” originally meant ghostly counterparts of a living person. In folklore and literature, encountering someone who could be your twin has traditionally been viewed as a bad omen. But in modern usage, the term often describes two unrelated people who closely resemble each other. This concept is the focus of Brunelle’s photography series, “I’m Not a Lookalike!”
The inspiration for the project came from his own lookalike: Mr. Bean, who is played by British actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson.
After being told for years that he looked like the character, Brunelle watched an episode that included a scene he called “awkward” to see his doppelgänger in.
“I said, ‘Oh my God, it looks like me, and he's taking a bath!’” said Brunelle, who felt like he was watching himself on TV.
