Yamillah Hurtado

Divine Feminity 

For as long as I can remember, I have been drawn to the way the world looks through a camera lens. I am enamored by the ability to freeze moments in time and capture the feelings, the colors and the memories within them.


Since I started my own journey with photography, I’ve been exposed to many artists but none have captivated me quite like Tyler Mitchell. The Atlanta native’s photography beautifully encapsulates the stillness and allure of Black life and culture. Mitchell honors his community through vibrant colors, bold messages and bringing life to the mundane. One photo of his, in particular — “Dreaming in Real Time” — inspired my work. It captures several generations within the Black community gathered in a meadow surrounding a lake. Mitchell’s method of highlighting the strength of his community in a place of tranquility moved me.


My photo series, “Divine Femininity,” highlights women's elegance and strength when they are united. The greatest gift of being a woman is being able to experience girlhood with others. All the precious moments that are universal for women are the ones I treasure the most in life. For this reason, I chose three of the women in my life to embrace one another surrounded by nature, all dressed in white  — mimicking the ethereal aesthetic of the cult film “Midsommar.”