Renata Crespo

Men & Flowers Can Coexis | I like to introduce myself as a self-taught woman artist who began her journey after falling in love with photography at the age of 20, when on my birthday I was given a Canon 1200D, my first camera ever. Back in 2016 tho, I study the basics of photography at the School of Creative Photography of Havana.

I unravel concepts through the visual, using photography as my main medium. My work is a projection of my own experiences and personal battles. I use my art as a way of self- understanding and with the ultimate purpose of educating and give representation to the issues I have faced. 

My practice has been recognised by institutions and publications such the Rotterdam Photo Festival and the contemporary art magazine Al-Tiba9. My art has been featured on many digital platforms with a feminist and integrationist approach. Feminist, Curated by GIRLS and Black is Mag are some of them. Another recent highlight of my journey was being included in the Black Women Photographers collective.

As someone who comes from a very ‘‘men don’t cry’’ society, the male figure has always lacked in fragility for me even though, I’ve always believed in the potential of women and men, equally.

In Cuba it is almost impossible to escape from the indoctrination of male superiority, that is brought to us in micro-doses to our daily life. Most of the time we don't even stop to think about some specific behaviours because we are so used to following those patterns since we are little, that we don't even question them anymore.

The identification and recognition of a term: Micro-machismo played a significant role in the motivation to start this project.

The realisation of these commonly unperceived acts of violence taking place in everyday life against women in Cuba, was one of the first culture shocks I confronted once living in The Netherlands. It absolutely astounded me, so I decided to start a project wherein I capture manhood along with the delicacy of such a frailness symbol as is a flower.

For ''Men and Flowers can coexist'' so far I have captured Cuban and Dutch men; friends I've met along the way who share the vision of the series, are committed to gender equality, and condemn toxic masculinity. renatacrespophotography.vsble.me