estilo wei artist spotlight
NIVIA HERNANDEZ
“Nivia Hernandez is a Photographer born in Guatemala City and raised in Brooklyn, NY. She has been featured in art collective shows as well as solo exhibitions around the Brooklyn and New York City area.”
Follow on IG @nivia.herNivia’s photographs display a natural essence and charm, often marrying her subjects to their environment with a profoundly pure approach that creates an intimate harmony. Many of these portraits are genuine in their intention to simply capture the unique beauty of daily life. From first glance, one will instantly recognize the vibrant colors, subtle space, and unique features all in celebration of the human race.
What creates a better photograph? Composition or subject? Both go hand in hand in my opinion.
What type of music do you like to listen to when editing photos? : I usually listen to two playlists I created on Spotify which consists of a whole lot of disco ,funk, 70’s oldies, hip hop and beachy tunes and depending on my mood I’ll switch to a playlist full of old Spanish love songs/ Spanish oldies that remind me of my family childhood parties (Mexican pop, merengue, bachata, and salsa.) Keeping Buena Vista Social Club on for a full editing session also gets the job done. Grateful for music helping me get through my editing process.
My biggest accomplishment to date would have to be seeing a photograph I took of my mother be selected to be showcased at School of Visuals Arts. SVA was a school I’ve only dreamed of attending, and I had an opportunity to take a course there and I was selected to be their featured artist, which lead to my photography being showcased there. It was a great reminder to myself that anything is possible if I continued to work hard and keep doing what I love.
Disposable cameras were my favorite as a kid, my first camera was a disposable camera that my dad had. I took a lot of photos of my family and friends around with disposable cameras, and eventually got a small point and shoot digital camera in High School and continued to document my experience through photographs. Photography became a tool for me to express myself, connect with others and document pockets of time I never wanted to forget.
Describe your style in one sentence. : Humanistic.
If you had a superpower, what would it be? : Be in multiple places at once and be able to fly.
When photographing your subject, how do you interact with them? Talking to them before a shoot and getting to know each other a little more and putting on some music during the shoot and possibly taking a break to dance.
I started a photo collection of Women in Guatemala in 2019 and it's been an ongoing project. My next project that i have in mind consists of portraits of people and their "trash"/items that they love and have found on the street/garbage. It’s so interesting to me that people throw away things that others love or even need.
What advice would you give another photographer that is just starting? Keep shooting, have fun, write your ideas down and don't think too much about the results. You will keep learning as you go :)
The rights to the images above belong to Nivia Hernandez