I began taking underwater photographs of people while I was living in Puerto Rico, initially because swimming seemed like an illustrative metaphor for the experience of living in a foreign culture—disorienting, blissful, captivating, governed by different laws and customs. Instead, what I found in water was a unique and powerful lens that seemed to reveal hidden aspects of my subjects. Sharks, trees, birds, bugs, demons, and monsters of all sorts appeared in the reflections and refractions. This imagery resonated powerfully with me. I try to render the images exactly as they appear in the photographs, which are too fantastical to invent.
