Photographer of the Week #95: Serena Jara

Serena Jara is a trans feminine artist living in Brooklyn, NY. Her work deals with questions of agency that are specific to trans women, as well as ideas about family and home.

Her stunning portraits and self documentation explore the community of creatives present in her life as well as where Jara herself exists within it. Jara’s work feels like a photographic shift in ownership. She allows her subjects to hold the shutter, releasing their image at the very moment they feel compelled to. This translates into a photograph that evokes honesty and comfort, something portraiture so frequently lacks when a photographer is simply looking to create a moment that they themselves have in mind. As viewer, you are granted the unique opportunity to see these subjects as they see themselves or how they wish to be perceived in a particular moment.

Jara’s emphasis on collaboration, specifically women helping women adds a surge of feminist power to her photographs. Find more of Jara’s work on her website here.