* All images used with permission. Please do not distribute without first contacting the artist.
Mark Menjivar is an artist and photographer based in San Antonio, TX. His work explores diverse subjects through photography, stories and found objects while emphasizing dialogue and collaboration. Mark is also a member of Borderland Collective.
His work has been shown at venues across the country including The Houston Center for Photography, The San Antonio Museum of Art, The Wignall Museum of Art, The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Baylor University, The Southwest School of Art and Central Michigan University. Mark’s work has been featured by National Geographic, Artforum, TED, NPR, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Village Voice, Gastronomica, Orion Magazine, GUP Magazine and dozens more.
Mark explains the work by saying, “‘You Are What You Eat’ is a series of portraits made by examining the interiors of refrigerators in homes across the Untied States. For three years I traveled around the country exploring the issue of hunger. The more time I spent speaking and listening to individual stories, the more I began to think about the foods we consume and the effects they have on us as individuals and communities. An intense curiosity and questions about stewardship led me to begin to make these unconventional portraits. A refrigerator is both a private and a shared space. One person likened the question, “May I photograph the interior of your fridge”” to asking someone to pose nude for the camera. Each fridge is photographed “as is.” Nothing added, nothing taken away. These are portraits of the rich and the poor. Vegetarians, Republicans, members of the NRA, those left out, the under appreciated, former soldiers in Hitler’s SS, dreamers, and so much more. We never know the full story of one’s life. My hope is that we will think deeply about how we care. How we care for our bodies. How we care for others. And how we care for the land.”
