Granizado + Edificios, La Habana, Cuba, 2018

Mis amigos cubanos conocen el significado de esta imagen. Un verano en la isla no es un verano sin visitas diarias a este puesto y a otros en la ciudad. Hay algo especial en esas botellas, especialmente en esas tardes calientes y húmedas ... ¡y es por eso que todas están vacías!

My Cuban friends know the signifance of this image. A summer on the island is not a summer without daily visits to this stand, and others around the city. There is something special in those bottles, especially on those hot and humid afternoons... and that's why all of them are empty!

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Ballerinas + Countryside, León, Nicaragua, December of 2017

Almost 45 years to the day, and almost 70 years after my father set foot in this city, this collaboration was born with a bit of happenstance. We had finished our work with a local NGO and were on our way out of the city when we saw a street advertisement for a ballet performance. We asked around and made our way to the school.

Inside the school was a handsome man directing a few workers on a project. Without much preparation we approached him and talked about the possibility of a collaboration with his students. He spoke in a most humble manner, and agreed immediately while inviting us to the performance. We changed our plans immediately and made our way to the theatre early in order to get the video camera ready.

So there we were, in the city of my father's young adulthood, watching a ballet performance and hoping for my photography to take hold in that beautiful city. The very next day we visited the school and made arrangements to work with the dancers.

This frame was exposed during our first session with the older students. We had found this beautiful spot just outside of the city, and asked the owners of the land for their permission. They gave it without hesitation and we made our way here with a handful of dancers. The trees all around us produced a beautiful combination of shadows and highlights, and the dancers presented their art within this mix.

My hope is that this year will allow us to dedicate much more time to the school, and these most gentle of people.

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Note: This image was made with a Hasselblad 503CW and 60 mm C lens.

Young Model + Scarf, Santa Maria del Mar, Cuba, Summer of 2014

We met almost five years ago while she was modeling at my friend's school in Havana, Cuba. She was just starting off and had the most striking features at such a young age, an old soul trapped in a young shell perhaps. We exposed a roll for her that same day, and have remained in touch since then, making this portrait just last summer on the island.

She had seen my work with the Muslim communities from Asia and wanted to present her spin, thus the shawl in this portrait. She was having a lot of fun with it, and it all seemed so surreal to me… a Cuban woman on the beach with a shawl over her hair. There were times when I thought I was somewhere else, only to be snapped back onto the beach by the scent of salt and the sound of the waves crashing onto the sand. This is what makes photography so magical!

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Model + Sugar Cane Fields, Artemisa, Cuba, Summer of 2014

This is what happens when the documentary approach intertwines with the fashion aspiration of the person being documented. This young woman and her friends live in Artemisa, Cuba. They used to attend a school for models hosted by our dear friend from the capital. Since the school has closed they have remained in contact with us and have shown a genuine desire to continue with our collaboration.

We found the path below an hour or so before we met with the group. Because Artemisa was the scene for the July 26th celebrations this year, our access to locations within the city was even more limited. The young women were surprised when we shared this location with them, but were so happy to have such privacy and serenity during the photography.

They brought three changes of clothes each, and two changed while one was in front of the lens. This young woman's twin was also photographed on the same day, and the twins were a singing duo on the island as well. Toward the end of the afternoon they played their music for us while we put our equipment away. To be with such wonderful people, in the countryside, listening to pop music while putting our stuff away into our mid-century cars was an experience to remember.

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