Since 2023, Jérémy Lempin has met people of all generations living with illiteracy*. His long-term investigation traces an invisible yet massive divide: in France (mainland and overseas territories), 3.7 million adults struggle with basic skills, including 1.5 million who are functionally illiterate and 3.2 million who face innumeracy. Long thought to affect only older generations, these difficulties also reach the young: a quarter of those concerned are under 30.
Through testimonies gathered across France and in French Guiana, the photographer brings to light a deep social reality—one that takes root in childhood, in early struggles at school, and resurfaces later in the lives of adults held back in their access to reading, writing, arithmetic, and independence.
Between intimate accounts, social fractures, and dignity regained, his work asks what it means to live in a society where the ability to read, write, and count determines access to the most basic rights.
With photographs full of sensitivity, dignity, and humanity, Jérémy Lempin reveals a gap rooted in our lands and our histories. By focusing on people born and educated in France, he reminds us that illiteracy is not something foreign, but an intimate wound at the heart of our Republic.
*Illiteracy refers to the situation of a person who has received schooling but has not acquired—or has since lost—the mastery of reading and writing, often due to fragile early learning. As a result, this person lacks the basic skills needed to be independent in simple everyday situations and is particularly exposed to the risk of social exclusion.
In the Nord region, Jérémy Lempin followed the story of Léon, 74, who worked for over 30 years as a former team leader—despite having forgotten how to read at the age of 14.
That of Audrey, 40, a mother of three, who returns to the classroom for refresher courses in math and French so she can help her children with their homework.
That of Lola, 14, dealing with family difficulties; and Honora, 9, placed in foster care.
Through their accounts and those of Alain, 47, Geoffrey, 14, Angélique, 38, and Réjane, 52, he tells of lives shadowed by the shame of being unable to decipher the world around them. Doing the shopping, filling out paperwork, booking a medical appointment, helping with homework, withdrawing money, or simply reading a recipe—every task is a struggle.
In French Guiana (where, according to a parliamentary report, illiteracy is three times higher in the French Caribbean and Réunion than in mainland France), Jérémy Lempin met, among others, Éliane, 14, and her mother Élia, 50, as well as Sylvana, 32, and Patricia, 25. In a territory where 67% of families are single-parent households and each home has an average of 4.5 children, twenty languages are spoken, and written command of French competes with these widely spoken languages.
June, 11th to September, 20th 2026
More information to come
A book and an exhibition that aim to:
→ RAISE PUBLIC AWARENESS OF THE ISSUE OF ILLITERACY
→ WARN AND EDUCATE ABOUT THE PROBLEMS LINKED TO ILLITERACY
→ ENCOURAGE PEOPLE LIVING WITH ILLITERACY TO BREAK THE VICIOUS CYCLE OF SHAME
→ SUPPORT EVERY INITIATIVE WORKING TO REDUCE THIS BLIGHT
Eradicating illiteracy calls for the mobilization of every part of society.
Préface
Marie-Hélène Lafon
Textes
Cécile JAFFRÉ, directrice de l’ANLCI
Paul RONDIN, directeur de la Cité internationale de la langue française
Mariam KOITA, référente académique prévention illettrisme (Guyane)
Perrine TERRIER, directrice de Savoirs pour Réussir Paris
Caroll WEIDICH, cofondatrice et directrice de Mots et Merveilles
Hervé Fernandez, ancien directeur de l’Agence nationale de lutte contre l’illettrisme (ANLCI)
Cécile Montastier, réseau GRETA-CFA Aquitaine
Amira Ouissam, formatrice en FLE à La Farandole
Nathalie Saysset, Présidente et cofondatrice de l’association Mots et Merveilles
Spécifications techniques
264 pages, 150 photographies couleur
Format 22 cm x 29 cm
Relié cartonné
- 216 pages sur papier offset 140g impression 4+4 (cahiers de 16 pages en reliure)
- 6 cahiers de 8 pages avec rabats sur papier couché brillant 150g
Gardes rapportées
Couverture : marquage en creux du titre sur un papier de recouvrement
Carton 25/10
Tranchefiles
Bandeau amovible
Jérémy Lempin is the son of a factory mechanic and a mother who worked as a nursing assistant in intensive care. Determined to follow in the footsteps of Robert Capa, he learned his craft in the French Navy as a photographer aboard the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, and later at the ECPAD (the French Defence audiovisual agency). He took part in numerous overseas operations, including Operation Serval in Mali and Operation Sangaris in the Central African Republic.
Awarded the Médaille militaire for bravery under fire by President François Hollande, in 2016 he decided to hang up his non-commissioned officer's cap and fully embrace the role of photojournalist.
Since then, he has covered a wide range of stories for the French and international press.
Launched in France on the occasion of Paris Photo 2018, Hemeria is a new ecosystem dedicated to the image in all its forms. Publisher, online book shop, and producer of a podcast about photography, it relies as much on new practices related to web technologies and short circuit as on the assets of the physical world.
The goal: develop all possible meeting points between a photographer and his audience, in France and abroad. The ambition: to create beauty, to enshrine it in the long term.
Designed to support all photographers wishing to publish their book while maintaining freedom of action and total control over the creative process, Hemeria is aimed at those who do not want to compromise on the quality of reproduction of their works, whether it is a book or an art print, and want to achieve the same level of excellence.
Above all, Hemeria supports committed photographers, whose work and reflection unfold over time around major societal issues or reverence to Nature, such as Maryam Ashrafi or Cristina Mittermeier.
PRINTING
Hemeria draws on the unique expertise developed by its partners, the founders of Printmodel®, a production studio specializing in bespoke printing processes for the worlds of luxury, art, and photography.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY
Hemeria uses only high-quality materials, including paper sourced from sustainably managed forests, produced in compliance with FSC and PEFC standards, in order to minimize its environmental footprint.
