Tell us your story as a human being and artist
I was born in Mérida, Venezuela and lived there until I was nine years old. Later I migrated to Caracas, the capital and also lived there for eight or nine years. Sadly, in 2014 I was forced to migrate because of the political instability in my country and the lack of resources, but this time I went to a different country.
I flew to France and lived there for a year, and finally rejoined my family and started my studies again in Basel, Switzerland. I’ve been living there for almost eight years, although now I travel quite often to Zurich, as well as Madrid, Spain.
I would describe myself as honest and incredibly curious. I have a passion for exploring and experimenting and I think that’s what led me to study so much. But there’s also deep sadness and nostalgia that I always try to understand and process through my photography.
What is art and photography to you?
They’re my life. There’s no more than that.
What inspires your work ?
I love people. And I love to get to know them while I portray them. I love to discover and reflect their identity or part of it in my photographs. And of course, nature and light are a big part of my inspiration to keep creating.
What are some of the works or pieces you are the most proud of?
I don’t know, I have so many, but yet none. I think I feel proud of always getting better but not of a particular piece of work.
What excites you about your life?
Having the opportunity to move around different countries and work and collaborate with amazing artists. Traveling always amazes me.
Learning too excites me too! Every day it’s an opportunity to learn something new.
What are some of your core values as a human being?
Honesty and fidelity. For me it’s extremely important to be honest and loyal to myself and what I want in life. I hate fake.
What are your projects for this year?
At the moment I’m working on a collaboration with a great stylist and designer from Venezuela based in London. It’s an autobiographical photographic series that talks about my experience growing up in Venezuela, so it’s very dear and close to me.
I also plan to keep shooting projects for my friend and mentor Jacqueline Loekito and perhaps, if I have the time, editing and putting together a photographic series I’ve been working on for the last three years.
What piece of advice would you give to young artists starting out?
I would say I am a young artist starting out as well. But my advice is that you connect as much as you can with the creatives around you, and work as much as you can while you’re in your late teens and early twenties. When you’re that young you think you’re invincible and that getting into a creative industry will be easy.
That’s the spirit you will want to take into your late mid- late twenties. Confidence in yourself and your skills are a key to success, as well as being able to communicate and convince people that your ideas are worth it. You need to be a great networker and have a creative community.
