Dominican is an ongoing body of work resulting in several trips made to the Cibao Region of the Dominican Republic, the birthplace of my father, between 2021 and 2023.

Spanish was not spoken in my home. I grew up around very few Latino people and with little exposure to my roots as a Dominican American. When I moved out of the suburbs and into New York in 2014, in bodegas and barbershops I would be addressed in Spanish. Unable to respond, an emptiness, confusion and curiosity about my roots began to grow.

Visiting the Dominican Republic in 2021 for the first time as an adult, unsure of my place in a country where I looked like the people around me but felt like a foreigner, I began to take photos as an attempt to learn how to be Dominican. It was a natural exercise in expressing my curiosity, and my longing to bridge a gap in my identity. 

The resulting images serve as the beginning of my effort to connect with my heritage. In the city and in the countryside where my father was born, through relatives and strangers, this work aims to re-establish the cultural link that was lost through the emigration of my family.