Angela Rowlings (she/her) is a documentary and portrait photographer based in Boston, Mass. and Prince Edward Island, Canada, where she has been documenting the intersection of culture and climate. We had the chance to speak to hear about her career photographing Boston’s diverse cultural festivals. Her project documenting New England’s first all-female mariachi band is on view at the Griffin’s annual outdoor exhibition, Vision(ary).
Website: https://angelarowlings.photoshelter.com/index
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelarowlings
About her project
Veronica Robles is a mariachi singer, musician, and folkloric dancer who co-founded and directs the Veronica Robles Cultural Center (VROCC), a space dedicated to programming for arts and culture for Boston’s Latino community while also welcoming residents of all backgrounds. Veronica, who has performed mariachi music since she was a teen in Mexico City, realized her dream of starting New England’s first all-female mariachi band. She balances her community work at VROCC with an increasing number of mariachi performances. Veronica says her work honors the memory of her daughter, Kithzia, who passed away as a teen.
While documenting many events around Boston for more than 20 years, I have witnessed Veronica showing up for the community consistently and enthusiastically in many ways. Through the arts, she has helped to foster a sense of cultural pride in Boston’s youth with Latin American heritage. She exudes warmth and acts as a bridge between these cultures and the broader Boston community by organizing events such as her annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration and offering dance, music, entrepreneurship, and leadership classes. Her love of community shown via music and dance mirrors my own that’s expressed photographically.
Running a successful cultural center while simultaneously leading an all-women mariachi band with a full calendar of events is no easy feat. My photos are meant to pay tribute to Veronica’s contributions and offer inspiration to others, particularly women, who are trying to juggle all that life brings us.
What inspired you to create this project, and how do you personally connect to your work? What do you hope to get out of it?
I met Veronica Robles long ago while working on a different project. After photographing many of her organization’s events over the years, I thought, why haven’t I done a project about Veronica herself? She’s amazing and gives so much to various communities in and around Boston. She saw a need for cultural education and decided to fill it. VROCC offers dance and music classes for youth, but they’ve expanded to offer various types of business and cultural workshops for adults as well. Meanwhile, Veronica also founded an all-female mariachi band made up of women from different cultures. One of my favorite things about being a photographer is meeting incredible people and learning new things while documenting their lives.
Do you believe this project helped you grow as an artist and how?
As an independent photojournalist, you have the liberty to photograph the way you want, in theory. However, there are paid assignments, editing, research for other projects, grant writing, and life to juggle at the same time. Sometimes you can’t photograph a part of the story due to scheduling conflicts, so you must seek alternative ways to tell the story. It’s taught me to check in frequently with the people I’m photographing. The best way to cover a story is by showing up and talking with people face to face. People open up so much more when you’re present.
What photographic and editing process did you go about using? What type of gear do you bring most often with you during these series?
I photograph with one DSLR and one mirrorless camera and two or three lenses. To me, the gear is less important than paying attention to light and anticipating moments. My background working at newspapers forced me to photograph in all types of light. Sometimes key moments happen in the worst light and you must find a way to make something beautiful in tough situations. When editing, I select images that both advance the narrative and help the collective piece flow. Sometimes it’s necessary to eliminate a favorite photo because it’s repetitive or has a similar feel to another.
How do you think or hope these photographs will impact its viewers?
Veronica is someone who has faced challenges as many people do, yet she is constantly inventing opportunities for herself and the community around her. She pushes herself creatively and professionally and encourages others to grow. Although her focus is on programming, education, and events in the Latinx community, she brings her music and dance to everyone and offers a welcoming environment for people of all backgrounds. Hopefully viewers get a glimpse of her life and will be inspired by her creativity and generosity of participation in Boston and surrounding areas.
How do you go about interacting and connecting to your subject?
I’ve known Veronica for most of my career, so we already had a friendly connection prior to this project. Coming from a background covering news, I prefer when people don’t pay attention to me or my cameras as I work, since my goal is to capture authentic scenes. During longer projects, there is often downtime between photographing moments. I use this time to ask questions or chat with people I’m photographing to get to know them and have them get to know me a bit.
Which three photographs of this series personally speak the most volume to you as the photographer?
My favorite photo is of Veronica singing during the Día de los Muertos event as a man hugs his son. The man had recently lost his father and embraced the child in a touching moment. Veronica dancing through the streets of East Boston with the children captures her relationship with the community. And the photo of Veronica facing the clouds shows a dreamer at work. Veronica is always pushing herself out of her comfort zone, trying new things, and uplifting others.
