About the Artist: Santiago Traverso transforms the world around us with a seductive cinematic aesthetic. The Ocala, Florida-based photographer’s mastery of light allows otherworldly glows and ominous hazes to create ethereal scenes that disrupt our sense of the everyday.

Traverso was born in San Francisco but raised in Lima, Peru. His artistic journey began there as a child with a passion for art. At the age of 16, photography fell into his lap. With a new clothing company preparing to launch, he and his partner were in desperate need of promotion materials. Traverso took the task upon himself and has been unable to put the camera down since. Photography proved itself to be a way he could express himself, unlike any other medium. In 2019 Traverso and his family relocated to Florida. It is here that he has cemented his signature dreamlike nostalgic approach, bringing together his love of the medium with his passion for film, and began building a thriving career as a professional photographer.

Recognition of his work continues to grow as his distinctive style captivates viewers, allowing his work to be featured in numerous publications, and exhibited with institutions including an upcoming show at Marion Cultural Arts Center’s Brick City Center.

About the Collection: Lost in the abyss of the mind, we dwell on the ghosts that haunt our memories. “Sleepless By Your Side” is Santiago Traverso’s collection of photographs that bring to life the all-consuming desire, passion, and infatuation for another person. From his darkened cinematic scenes his subjects emerge, the main character with a chokehold on our thoughts and fantasies. Accented by dramatic beams of light, blurs of movement, double exposures, and a soft otherworldly aesthetic, his images come together radiating a synthesis of longing and loneliness.