Orgullo en La Noche

“ I was always surrounded by all the color living in Peru, and now I love to have all that color around me. The hat was made by a local artisan in Lima, and the cape is from my hometown in Arequipa. These pieces are very important to me because they bring me back home; they are a reminder of who I am.”

In this timely photo series “Who we are: the will to adorn”, the subjects adorn themselves with pieces of clothing and jewelry that have a history, sentimental meaning, and significance to their identity. In a time where racial division is on the rise and anti-immigration rhetoric is prevalent, it is a joining of women who have “the will”, the deliberate intention, to celebrate the beauty of who they are. The combination of photojournalistic photographs and unconventional portraiture place subjects in their own home or landscapes that resemble their native land. With this, I am inviting viewers to look, listen, and think about the significance of adornment, the value of culture, and the will that it takes to be who we are, truly and fearlessly in America.