Caymanian featured in Vogue Italia

(CMR) Caymanian photographer Sammar Patterson had her photo featured recently in Vogue Italia Magazine. The 23-year-old lives in Charlotte, North Carolina in the United States and shared her excitement at having work recognized.

Sharing her thoughts with CMR she noted that:

A picture is worth a thousand words they always say but they never talk about the teleportation. A photograph can take you somewhere or bring you back to Now with just a glance. I had that euphoric connection to the craft at 15 and haven't stopped since. I started photography when I was in the 6th grade and one of my best friend's mothers was a photographer and she would let me pose them.

Eventually, it led to me taking the shots and I never stopped. I got my first camera when I was 18 and took it everywhere I went. My friends started realizing how serious I was and luckily a lot of them were looking to pursue themselves creatively as well.

We would conjure up concepts and attach locations to them and shoot as much as we could. That same dedication to seeing it through became my therapy and a way to shop for new perspectives.

I take photographs to continue the legacy of storytelling and expanding what truth is. Most people don’t see themselves for who they are or what they have within; just the opposite actually.

I want to continue to make people look in the mirror and feel better about themselves along with the discovery of truths; my truth, their truth, truth is relative so as close to it as we can be to the human experience. Start a movement, break down barriers, and in all make a change, a photograph has that power.

If at 15 you would have told me I would go on to be published by Vogue Italia I would have not believed you. I am so proud to have accomplished such a goal I've had my eye on for some years now.

It was simply confirmation to keep going in the direction that I'm in and I couldn't be more grateful. Michaela Cole said it best, “for visibility these days amounts to success”, being able to take up space to represent people who look like me is such an honor and symbol of success, not just for me, but for us.

In that same regard, I will continue to put out work that furthers that message. I would like to thank everyone who has helped me along the way and my family for keeping me grounded. Give praise to the Most High.