Gonzalo Guzman is a queer Latinx photographer and writer based in Chicago, Illinois.

He graduated from Columbia College Chicago in 2014 and immediately started working as an assistant in the commercial photo industry. He has held various positions working under photographers, stylists, producers, and photo agents who are at the top of their fields gaining a wide skill set and understanding of the industry as a whole.

In 2020, he made antiracism a core tenet of his work. He developed and moderated a workshop that was presented to photo professionals in positions of hiring on the importance of providing a pathway into the industry for BIPOC creatives.

Later that year he started a series called “Manos Como Las Mías” that highlights Latinx talent in the photo, film, and TV industries as a way to increase visibility of these artists and allow them a space to share their stories on their experiences in the industry. In early 2021, he was invited to be a board member of the Chicago Chapter of APA to continue this work advocating for diversity and inclusion in the photo industry.

As he looks for opportunities to move behind the camera, Gonzalo’s genuine curiosity of the people around him motivates his personal photographic practice. Many of his projects take a narrative approach that allow his collaborators to share stories that are both personal and universal. A strong believer in the power of storytelling, Gonzalo hopes to use his work to foster empathy and promote social change while advocating for an industry that allows all to thrive.

collaboration between gonzalo guzman and Alibé Brambila

“this project is about making connections with those who have a shared history and experience as we all try to create a life for ourselves in this industry.”

Also, these fields have historically been white-dominated through gatekeeping in the form of exclusive networks, expensive higher education, and generally fewer opportunities provided to BIPOC creatives.

Through this project I hope to create a network of Latinx professionals in these fields, serve as an educational resource for those interested in how to break into the industry, and showcase the amazing Latinx talent that you should hire for your next project.

collaboration between gonzalo guzman and Veronica Aviña

Finding a pathway into the industry is daunting and makes cultivating a community with those who have a similar cultural experience secondary.

Manos Como Las Mías is a project highlighting Latinx creatives in the film, television, and photography fields.

“Gonzalo’s genuine curiosity of the people around him motivates his personal photographic practice. ”

collaboration between gonzalo guzman and Alba Irahola

This title was inspired by a conversation with Jose Fuentes, a prop master and one of the featured creatives for this first series.

While I was photographing them for this project they mentioned that people never know what to do with their hands in pictures and try to hide them, but Jose thought that hands were beautiful. You can tell the story of a person’s life just by looking at their hands. For me, this project is about making connections with those who have a shared history and experience as we all try to create a life for ourselves in this industry. I want to find Manos Como Las Mías.