The Search: zroaphotography

'My passion for art & photography drives my soul to achieve what others are afraid to tackle; the juxtaposition of various cultures & communities throughout planet earth, architectural lines and shapes amongst the human body, and the combining of graffiti/murals/cityscape within our society through fashion and fine art images.'
Z Roa

It is always dangerous to label anything, especially art. That being said, I always say great art has to do more than visually stimulate, it has to evoke something in the viewer emotionally. When spending time with the work of Z Roa from zroaphotography emotions were certainly evoked and I could not help but feel a deep sense of longing.

In many of Z's images, the men appear to be seeking, searching for something. Through his use of space and light there is something close, just outside the window, through the door, or around the corner. Z's ability to create both a distance and a closeness within his images was something that stood out strongly to me. Normally, I am not a fan of images which feature naked bodies without a face, and especially eyes, attached. It can sometimes feel as if the body is not attached to a man, a human being with feelings and emotions. Z however, manages to capture those intense emotions without a face in focus.

Although I featured mainly black and white selections in this piece, in exploring Z's portfolio, his images, often of locations surrounding his home in San Francisco, are dynamic and colorful with an eye for clean lines and architecture in his images of both human models and location. Z beautiful captures the incredible balance between the motion and fluidity of the human form with the still, solid and often square figures we seek and search through that make up much of the world that surrounds us.

Check out more of zroaphotography on ModelMayhem HERE: You can also check out a great selection of images HERE: