Luis' Arm with Flag/Puro Colombia, Paterson, NJ, 2014
Masa Arepa/Corn Cake Dough, Paterson, NJ, 2014
Dad (Summer), Keene, NY, 2014
Dad's Brushes, Paterson, NJ, 2014
Dad After a Nap (Summer), Paterson, NJ, 2014
Dad's Watch & Wallet, Tenafly, NJ, 2014
Dad, Tenafly, NJ, 2014
Kitchen Stove, Paterson, NJ, 2014
Mom & Dad on the TV, Paterson, NJ
Mom (Winter), Paterson, NJ, 2015
Working-class people are not that different than well off and more fortunate people in society. The only thing is when life’s problems arise and there is no money to take care of them; dreams are dashed. I look at my parents through the lens as of an adult who is now older than they were when they first arrived in the United States. I grew up in Paterson, NJ’s Riverside section; in the shadow of New York City amongst Paterson’s declining industry and long forgotten silk mills. My family and I are first generation immigrants. My parents never openly chased the American dream, but they instilled in their children the value of hard work and were grateful for the opportunities as they became available. My parents, Ramiro Giraldo & Patricia Penagos have now lived in United States longer than they did in our native Manizales, Colombia. In 2013, I began photographing my parents and the neighborhood I was raised in. Through my parents and their environment, I look at the things that created our immigrant experience. Through my photographs I want to give them what they couldn’t achieve like so many other immigrant generations before them. They endure. My work is about them as much as it is for them. I honor them and their lives.
East 17th St
East 17th St
Working-class people are not that different than well off and more fortunate people in society. The only thing is when life’s problems arise and there is no money to take care of them; dreams are dashed. I look at my parents through the lens as of an...
Juan Giraldo Photography
Colombian born Juan Giraldo is a photographer currently residing between Chicago and New Jersey. He documents the life and culture of the working class in cities.
