FERMÍN GUZMÁN

Jun 9

Fermín Guzmán is a street photographer, born in Mexico City. With his camera h seeks to capture those unique and magical moments that can only be found in Mexico. His work refers to the urban, capturing its territory.

When and where did you start photographing?

FG: I got into photography in 2008 taking courses at the Fabrica de Arte y Oficios de Oriente (FARO), located in the Iztapalapa city of CDMX. I remember that I started using an analog camera and I shot my first rolls in my neighborhood.

“I photograph the neighborhood because I was born and grew up in the neighborhood, I am the neighborhood and that is why I understand it perfectly and it shows in my images”

Who (is) has (have) been the reference in your photography?

FG: There are 4 relevant references: my teachers Jesús Villaseca and Mark Powell, and the great street photographers Garry Winogrand and Vivian Maier. I am inspired by their work

What message do you want to convey through your photographs?

FG: At this point, as a photographer, I believe that the viewer has an obligation to digest and analyze the image so that he can understand it in the best way possible for him. We often get used to the viewer saying what motivated us or our intention when photographing such an event or such a moment, leaving aside the possibility that he draws his own conclusions. But well, answering the question, I seek to show the world in which I am immersed, my world, capture that way of life that exists in my neighborhood, photograph what catches my attention in the streets, in the towns, in the city, etc. It's that simple, there are no mysteries or the discovery of the black thread in my work, I have always tried to be as simple as possible.

What does street and documentary photography mean to you?

FG: I believe that both genres are linked to anthropology, because they document the path of the human being in their different stages of life, in their social bonds, and in their relationship with their environment. For this reason, I believe that the line that divides these two genres is very thin.

How are your life experiences reflected in the symbols that we see in your photographs?

FG: I photograph the neighborhood because I was born and grew up in the neighborhood, I am the neighborhood and that is why I understand it perfectly and it shows in my images.