Photographer Matthias Hamann’s diaristic shots are a documentation of his time spent between Berlin and New York – from the intimate to the queer club scene, the German-born talent was there to capture it. His latest book, titled You Would, sees Hamann contrast these candid photographs with works of art. The juxtaposition sees bare bums placed beside Chinese back tattoos, and elsewhere marble statues and buzz cuts collide in a mix up of Hamann’s social circle and his surroundings, as the photographer explains, “There's something transhistorical about them.”

Hoping to shine a light on alternative lifestyles like his own, the book is a personal look into the photographer’s social circle and daily observations. “The more people are exposed to different lifestyles, the more they can come to accept them: whether it's drag, transsexual, homosexual or heterosexual – however it's defined.” Hamann hopes his work can help shift boundaries within gender, adding, “I hope my pictures will make a contribution to unsettling gender norms in some ways, to help people think differently about them. Images of gender roles shouldn't just been found in explicit contexts. In this way, there's a possibility to open a space for more understanding and acceptance.”

You Would is available now from Spector Books