It’s easy to get lost in the work of Juan Veloz, a self-taught Dominican photographer whose approach is closely tied to his Dominican Heritage. Yara Shahidi and Kid Cudi, Patti LaBelle and Usher, Veloz’s work is beautiful, raw, and evocative. From Brooklyn to Los Angeles, Veloz has become one of the go-to celebrity photographers in Hollywood called on by varying publications, including Paper, Nylon, i-D, and The New York Times. With work featured on billboards across LA to documenting the Met Gala, Veloz is a living embodiment of his ancestors’ wildest dreams.

As a kid, Veloz spent much of his time with his grandmother. As a young teenager, his curiosity led him to ask her many questions about her life and upbringing in Dominican Republic. With only one image left from her childhood, his grandmother’s lack of photographs inspired him to start documenting his family’s story. From his initial days photographing his family and community in New York City, Veloz has now made a name for himself, landing work with clients like Vogue, Dior, Netflix, and Nike. Building toward a more equitable future in media representation, we spoke with Veloz about his visual language, the role of cultural identity behind the lens, and his commitment to centering honesty.

*Juan Veloz BTS on set. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

A bicoastal photographer, your childhood years were spent in New York City. How did coming of age in the Brooklyn Dominican diaspora shape you?
Growing up in New York City as a first-generation Dominican/American was the best of both worlds. I come from a beautiful bright, loud, honest Dominican family. New York City in the late ‘90s was an experience. I have vivid memories of how vibrant Brooklyn was. Vivid memories of daydreaming in a park while all my cousins played baseball.

Many who grew up in intergenerational family units have shared experiences flipping through photo albums as a way to learn about family histories. Is this how photography found you?
I was about 13 or 14 years old, and overall just a curious kid. I was always asking my grandma about her upbringing in the Dominican Republic, and within asking her about her upbringing, I wanted to see physical photos. She only had this one image of herself as a baby, which sparked something in my head: why don’t I document the family? Why don’t I start preserving my culture? From there, my earliest memories with photography were capturing family parties, birthdays, baby showers, and taking photos of my sister Monica.

*Family party captured by Juan Veloz. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

Latinidad isn’t a monolith, and as a term, is fraught with its own oversights and internalized racism and exclusion. Existing at the intersections of ethnicity and race, stories rooted in and media reflective of Afrolatinidad have often been eclipsed by whitewashed and one-note narratives of what we’re told Latinidad means, is, and looks like. Coming from an Afro-Dominican family, how do your culture and identity influence your photographic eye?
My duty as an artist is to always tell the story in the most authentic way possible. Honesty and authenticity is all I know. I was raised to stand my Blackness and also in my Latinidad. I thank my grandma for sacrificing her entire life to come to this country to give us a better life. My family was very direct and kept it simple in explaining our Blackness. We never shied away from our Blackness, which is something I’ll forever be proud of. My family created a safe space, but once I left my house I had to apply that knowledge when the kids in the neighborhoods would tease me: “I was too Black to be Dominican.” But again, by applying what my family instilled in me, that couldn’t affect me.

*Juan Veloz’s grandmother by Juan Veloz. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

Your art has led you to capture some of the most influential Black creatives in the film and tv industry. This year, you had the opportunity to shoot Colman Domingo: one of the foremost Afro-Latino actors of the times. Having the opportunity to photograph him must have felt like a full circle moment.
I know our ancestors were proud. I know our mothers were beyond proud, cheering us on from the heavens. It was such a moment to capture Colman, and I want to thank my good friends Wayman and Micah who helped orchestrate that project with Louis Vuitton.

From Yara Shahidi to Jenifer Lewis, your art is an ode to the poetics of Black bodies. With such beauty, grace, and familiarity, many of these images feel as if you were photographing family. Is there a difference between how you photograph editorial work and your family?
My approach is legit the same from photographing my family to celebrities. I always want to make sure I’m giving my subjects their flowers. I want you to feel empowered, heard, seen, loved, understood. My approach is always love, because my foundation as an artist was always rooted in love.

*BTS of SZA by Juan Veloz for the Met Gala, 2022. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

*Colman Domingo by Juan Veloz for Haute Living, 2024. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

*Jenifer Lewis by Juan Veloz for The New York Times, 2022. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

In 2022, you were featured in Tercera Cultura, a series by Metaverse that invited Latino voices to talk about creating a Third Culture: a reference to those who spend a significant part of their childhood in a culture other than their parents' or their country of nationality. As a product of a third culture, how does your work spark discussions around identity and belonging?
Fully ingesting and being aware of how my grandma was raised, to then how she raised my mother to then how my mother raised me…it’s completely different, but there's some things that stick. Different times and a lot of adapting to new eras, but the morals, the traditions, the love, the comfort were always intact.

One of the most striking photographic bodies of work in your canon is Mi Sangre, an ode to Dominican Republic.
One of my dream projects was to always do a series highlighting my family in Dominican Republic. I never want to forget my roots, and the sacrifices my family went through to come to this country. I feel like Mi Sangre will be an ongoing project as long as I live. Something is always changing in my lineage. In time, some of us pass on, and the babies grow up. I want to capture everyone in different spaces and times of their lives. It’s an expansion of preserving my culture.

*Selects from Mi Sangre photo story by Juan Veloz. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

You had the opportunity to bring your grandmother to the forefront through a recent Nike De Lo Mio campaign. Grandmothers are the matriarchs, the keepers of wisdom, and oftentimes, the backbones that hold families together. Yet, they’re not usually thought about about within the context of sneaker culture. What led you to choosing her as the main subject for this campaign?
I always say my grandmother is my second mother. While my mom was working, my Welita would look after us. We had a lot of conversations walking around Brooklyn. The least I can do as her grandson is give her her flowers, listen to her, love on her, and protect her. That project will forever be a defining moment in my life and career. I wanted to show her younger self some love. It was such a beautiful process. My mom creative directed the shoot, my cousin Chrissy did the makeup: it was a family function! All hands on deck. That Nike fully trusted me to highlight my Welita, was (and is) forever ICONIC.

*Juan Veloz’s grandmother Monica Soriano for Nike’s De Lo Mio Campaign. Courtesy of Juan Veloz.*

From photography, makeup, and pop culture, both you and your sister have made huge strides in Afrolatino representation. What do you hope today’s young kids take away from the legacy you two are building?
Never forget the foundation. Let that WHY be the drive that pushes you day to day.

You recently participated in an exhibition called Calling:Home. Across your catalogue, home is everpresent. How do you define home?
Home is ever-changing. That exhibition was something that you just had to be there to experience love and safety. That was Home. My good friend Fred was the mastermind behind this exhibition, and I will forever hold that close to my heart.

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