Legacy in Stone
A personal depiction of the Cuban exiles through the monuments of José Martí captures the enduring spirit of a community displaced yet steadfast in upholding its cultural heritage and revolutionary ideals. These monuments stand not just as tributes to a revered figure but as symbols of resilience, unity, and unwavering commitment to the pursuit of freedom and justice. Each statue, each plaza tells a story of sacrifice, of longing, of the relentless pursuit of a homeland that exists both in memory and aspiration. Through these monuments, the Cuban exile experience is etched in stone, a timeless reminder of a people's unwavering determination amidst adversity and displacement.
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Author’s Selection Store
Author’s Selection was established from the initial concept of developing a platform not just for selling my photographic works but for crafting an interactive environment as well. The curation procedure commences with the handpicking of a single photo each month from my extensive collection, spanning from the earliest to the most current captures, all holding a special place in my journey as a photographer. Central to the vision behind the Author’s Selection Store is the meticulous attention given to guaranteeing top-notch photo quality, with each print personally produced on archival-grade papers, signed, and assigned with a unique number. I wholeheartedly appreciate your choice in including my images within your personal collection.
Letter from Jorge
Hello, I'm glad you're here watching my photographs, I hope you like them. If you have come here it is because you would like to know more about my photography, and about me. Well, I'll tell you a little about who I am and who is behind every image you've seen.
My name is Jorge J Perez and I am a Cuban photographer born in Havana, who now lives in the United States, to be more exact in Miami / Florida, surely the second capital of Cuba. I was born on February 21, 1987 in a neighborhood called El Cerro, probably one of the most peculiar and emblematic places of the city. As a child like so many others, I spent hours with a pencil in hand drawing, the drawing surely comes from some predecessor relatives who also had enough attachment and talent with the drawing. Nor will I say that it was a Cuban Picasso, but drawing at such an early age helped my training as a photographer giving me a better reading of composition, shapes and the light.
If you ask my school degree, well, I am graduated as a Technician in Electronics in 2006, at the Osvaldo Herrera Polytechnic in Havana. It was around this time that I began to discover photography following two almost simultaneous events that occurred. First of all, the discovery of Adobe Photoshop as an editing tool, this was something that deeply fueled my curiosity about the image and shapes, as previous years had happened to the drawing, and secondly, my father's gift for becoming an electronics graduated, was my first camera "Thank you Dad", and at this moment I was trapped by this medium called Photography. As if it was a trap, I remained in this cage of lights from which I do not even want to leave. Photography definitely changed my life and through it I found my most sincere mode of expression.
I started my photography training at the beginning of 2008, where I took several workshops on camera management and History of Photography, in the reborn Photographic Club of Cuba. There began my academic training in the subject, there I met those who would later become my first photographic references. I met the decisive moment of Henri Cartier-Bresson and also the immigration perspective in the eyes of Robert Frank in his book "The Americans", images that would later take much more relevance in my life.
Then, at the end of 2011 many changes happened, I moved to another the city, another country, and language. For me it was the most abrupt moment of my life, I would call it "The Vacuum Jump". I went to the country where Robert Frank portrayed “The Americans,” the land of Ansel Adams, Diane Arbus, Garry Winogrand, and many other great photographers. The land of opportunities, especially if you are a photographer.
Now, many years after my firsts photos, I'm still in love with photography, and yet the most important photograph is still the next one to take. Through my lens, I document my life's journey, revealing who I am and the roots that shaped me.
This is a bit of my story. See you in the next frame.
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