Robyn Day Photography
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Robyn Day is a San Francisco-based photographer and former arts critic at Photograph, Art New England and The ARTery at WBUR, Boston's NPR news station. In 2017, she graduated from the photography MFA program at Columbia College Chicago, where she received the Graduate Merit Award and the Stuart Abelson Graduate Research Fellowship.
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Day's work examines the queerness of identity categories, including the fluidity of gender, sexuality, and sex, through conceptual and documentary photography. Whether working within a typological framework—if only to subvert it—or through ethnographic immersion, Day's practice is research-driven and informed by queer theory. She is interested in global queer identities, cultures, and communities, and makes art reflective of those interests as a kind of “political portraiture” that calls into question heteronormative and gender-normative assumptions.  

solo & two-person exhibitions

#1 Family Attraction: Ileana Doble Hernandez + Robyn Day, Fountain Street Fine Art, 460C Harrison Ave., Boston, upcoming Mar-Apr 2023, juried by Marie Craig, Director

Nobody Knows, Queer Festival Heidelberg, Karlstorbahnhof Heidelberg, Nov. 2021, curated by Dominic Hauser and Martin J.V. Müller, Co-Founders

Nobody Knows, Elizabeth Houston Gallery, New York, NY, Apr. 28 - Jul. 9, 2021, curated by Elizabeth Houston, Director

Robyn Day + Lisa Lindvay, Schneider Gallery, Chicago, IL, Sep. 7 - Oct. 20, 2018, curated by Martha Schneider, Director

Politicollage, Center on Halsted, Chicago, IL, Mar. 2 - Apr. 10, 2018, curated by David Joseph, Exhibitions Curator

select group exhibitions

Instant Gratification, Float Photo Magazine, online exhibition from Dec. 2022, juried by Vann Powell, contributing writer

FOCUS PHOTO LA, 3118 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, Sep. 17-19, 2021, juried in 2020 by Elizabeth Houston, Owner and Director, Elizabeth Houston Gallery; Eve Schillo, Assistant Curator, Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, LACMA; Scarlet Cheng, Arts Writer and Educator

PHOTO LONDON, Elizabeth Houston Gallery, Sep. 9-12, 2021

Queer Artists Invitational, Cornel Henry Art, San Diego, CA, Jan. 18-Feb. 28, 2021, curated by co-directors C. Fodoreanu and Henry T.

Yakushima Photography Festival, Yakushima, Japan, Nov. 2020, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

Fragments, Arc Gallery, San Francisco, CA, online exhibition, Nov. 21-Dec. 19, 2020, juried by Jen Tough, owner and director, Jen Tough Gallery, Santa Fe

FOCUS PHOTO LA, Virtual Collect + Connect, PHOTO LA, June 27-28, 2020, juried by Elizabeth Houston, Owner and Director, Elizabeth Houston Gallery; Eve Schillo, Assistant Curator, Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, LACMA; Scarlet Cheng, Arts Writer and Educator

14th Julia Margaret Cameron Award Exhibition, Honorable Mention, Gallery FotoNostrum, Barcelona, Spain, Mar. 4-28, 2020, juried by Elizabeth Avedon, curator; Rebecca Richardson, Editor PDN; Analy Werbin, Curator, Biennial of Fine Art & Documentary Photography

PHOTO LA, Round Hole Square Peg 4, Barker Hangar – Santa Monica, CA, Jan. 30-Feb. 2, 2020 and Plummer Park Gallery, West Hollywood, Feb. 8-Mar. 4, 2020, juried by Claudia Bartlett, Director, Photo LA; Paul Bridgewater, Director, Smart Clothes Gallery, New York; Ruben Esparza, Director, Queer Biennial; Bert Green, Director, Bert Green Fine Art, Chicago; and Phil Tarley, Director, Round Hole Square Peg
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PULSE Art Fair, Indian Beach Park, Miami Beach, FL, Dec. 5-8, 2019

Photolux Festival, Lucca, Italy, Nov. 16 - Dec. 8, 2019, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

SUBURBS, LoosenArt, Millepiani, Rome, Italy, Oct. 4- Nov. 5, 2019 

Satellite Art Show, Pfizer Building, New York, NY, Oct. 3-6, 2019

Kuala Lumpur International Photo Awards, Portrait Photography Prize, ILHAM Gallery, Kuala Lumpur, Sep. 2019, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

SUWON International Photo Festival, Suwon, South Korea, Sep. 2019, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

Mt. Rokko International Photography Festival, Mirage Gallery, Kobe, Japan, Aug. 28 - Sep. 1, 2019, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

CRIMINALIZE THIS!: The Social Policing of Gender and the Criminalization of Queerness, Amos Eno Gallery, Brooklyn, NY, upcoming Jul. 11-27, 2019, curated by Lorenzo Triburgo, multimedia artist

Auckland Festival of Photography, Jun. 1-10, 2019, Ellen Melville Centre, Auckland, New Zealand, curated by Enrico Stefanelli, founder and artistic director, Photolux Festival; Tom White, photographer; Charmaine Poh, artist; Hasnoor Hussain, photojournalist; Kong Yen Lin, curator

European Month of Photography Emerging Photographers, BERLIN BLUE art, Berlin, Oct. 26 - Nov. 3, 2018, curated by gallery founders Renata Kudlacek, Nele Ouwens, and Kama Jackowska

Art for Life Chicago, DIFFA Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS, Venue West, Oct. 18, 2018, curated by Jef Borgeau, Director, Museum of New Art; Jessica Hopkins, Chief Curator, Museum of New Art; Bert Green, Owner, Bert Green Fine Art; Laura-Caroline Johnson, Collection and Exhibition Manager, DePaul Art Museum; Amy King, Curator, King Art Collective; Aron Packer, Leslie Hindman Auctioneers; Derek Roberts, Design Manager, Smithsonian Institution; Richard Bentham, Exhibit Manager, Smithsonian Institution; Jeremy Rothschild, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs; Catherine Shotick, Curator, Driehaus Museum; Doug Van Tress, President, Golden Triangle 

On the Street (Fabrik Magazine), Photo Independent Art Fair, Los Angeles, Oct. 5 - 7, 2018, curated by Paul Bridgewater, Curator; Francis Coiro, Director, Iconix Art Group; Bert Green, Owner, Bert Green Fine Art; Sarah Lee, Curator; and Phil Tarley, Critic and Curator

Andy Warhol: Icon & Influence, Lubeznik Center for the Arts, Michigan City, IN, Jun. 9 - Oct. 13, 2018, curated by CarolAnn Brown, Exhibitions Curator

Bringing Sexy Back, Jackson Junge Gallery, Chicago, IL, May 11 - Jul. 1, 2018, curated by Chris Jackson, Gallery Director, and Kaitlyn Miller, Assistant Gallery Director 

Premio Carlo Bonatto Minella Edition IV, Czech Centres, Prague, Mar. 29 - Apr. 20, 2018, curated by Karin Reisovà, President, Areacreativa42, and Petr Hayek, Director, Chemistry Gallery
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LA Art Show, Round Hole Square Peg 3, Bert Green Fine Arts booth, Los Angeles, CA, Jan. 10-14, 2018 and Long Hall in Plummer Park, West Hollywood, CA, Feb. 3- Mar. 17, 2018, juried by Laura Aguilar, Artist; Paul Bridgewater, Curator; Zackary Drucker, Artist; Bert Green, Curator; Robert Summers, Curator; and Phil Tarley, Curator

Premio Carlo Bonatto Minella Edition IV, Città di Torino, Artissima, Turin, Italy, Nov. 2017, juried by Karin Reisovà, President, Areacreativa42; Antonio D'Amico, Art Critic; Alberto Mattia Martini, Director, Accademia Laba; Blanca Soto, Director, Galeria Blanca Soto;  Sarah Monk, Director, London Art Fair; Federico Pazzagli, Financial Director, Exibart; Pavel Kubesa, Curator and Director, NoD Gallery


The Curated Fridge, FlashPoint, Gallery Kayafas, Boston, MA, Oct. 18-27, 2017, juried by Brian Paul Clamp, Director, ClampArt
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Emerging Artists Auction, Daniel Cooney Fine Art, New York City, NY, July 21 - Aug. 4, 2017

Art Olympia 2017, Toshima Center Square, Tokyo, Japan, June 17 - 25, 2017, juried by Brett Littman, Executive Director, The Drawing Center; Kara Vander Weg, Director, Gagosian Gallery, NYC; Chu Teh-I, Founder and Director, Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts; Florence Derieux, Curator of American Art, Centre Pompidou Foundation; Simon Njami, independent curator and Co-Founder of Revue Noire

Gendered: An Inclusive Art Show, The Mint Museum Uptown, Charlotte, NC, June 16 - July 21, 2017, juried by photographers Kelli Connell, Ryan James Caruthers, and John Edmonds, and Carla Hanzal, Vice President of Public Art, Arts and Science Council 

Strength & Beauty: The Women's Show, South x Southeast Photo Gallery, Molena, GA, May 5 - June 30, 2017, juried by Molly Roberts, Senior Photography Editor, National Geographic Magazine 

Arte Laguna Prize 16.17, Nappe Arsenale Nord, Venice, Mar. 25 - Apr. 9, 2017, juried by Igor Zanti, Chief Curator, Arte Laguna, Flavio Arensi, Art Critic, Salvador Nadales, Curator of Photography, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid, Tamara Chalabi, Chair and Co-Founder of the Ruya Foundation, Paolo Colombo, Art Advisor, Istanbul Museum of Modern Art, Suad Garayeva, Curatorial Director, Yarat Contemporary Art Centre, Ilaria Gianni, Curator and Art Critic, Nav Haq, Senior Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art, Antwerp, Emanuele Montibeller, Artistic Director, Arte Sella, Fatos Ustek, Independent Curator, UK, and Alma Zevi, Curator and Art Critic.

Art for Life Chicago, DIFFA Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS, Chicago, IL, Mar. 22, 2017, juried by Jerry Saltz, Senior Art Critic, New York Magazine; Carolann Brown, Exhibitions Curator, Lubeznik Center for the Arts; Tony Karman, President/Director, EXPO Chicago; Derek Roberts, Design Manager at the Smithsonian Institution; Richard Bentham, Design Manager at the Smithsonian Institution; Jessica Hopkins, Chief Curator, Museum of New Art; Jef Bourgeau, Director, Museum of New Art, and others. 

Seduction, Jackson Junge Gallery, Chicago, IL, Jan. 27 - Mar. 5, 2017, juried by Chris Jackson and Laura Junge, Directors

Feminine/Masculine, PH21 Gallery, Budapest, Hungary, Jan. 12 - Feb. 7, 2017, juried by Zsolt Bátori, Director
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The GALA Awards, International Biennial of Fine Art and Documentary Photography, Palazzo Italia, Berlin,  Oct. 6-30, 2016 (European Month of Photography), juried by Laura Noble, Founder and Director, LA Noble Gallery, London, and Julio Hirsch-Hardy, Director and Chief Curator of the Biennial of Fine Art & Documentary Photography and the Berlin Foto Biennale

FRESH! 2016: The Modern Portrait, JanKossen Contemporary,  New York, NY, Jul. 7 - Aug. 13, 2016, juried by Jasmin Kossenjans, Director

Hannah Bacol Busch Gallery, Novus Conceptum, Apr. 9 - Sep. 30, 2016, as part of Houston Foto Fest 2016: Sixteenth International Biennial of Photography & Photo Related Art 

Moscow International Foto Awards 2016, Honorable Mention, Na Kashirke Gallery, Moscow, July 20 - Aug. 7, 2016, juried by Tina Schelhorn, Curator, Galerie Lichtblick, Chris Davis, Art Director, Fabrik Magazine, Christophe Loviny, Artistic Director, Yangon Photo Festival, Hossein Farmani, Founder, Curator, The Lucie Awards, Robert Berman, Director, Berman Gallery, Michael Pritchard, Director-General, The Royal Photographic Society, Susan Spiritus, Director, Susan Spiritus Gallery, Tatiana Kurtanova, Director, FotoLoft, and others 

Arte Laguna Prize 15.16, Arsenale of Venice, Italy, Mar. 19 - Apr. 3, 2016, juried by Igor Zanti, Chief Curator, Arte Laguna; Miguel Amado, Senior Curator, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art; Anna Bernardini, Director, Museum at Villa and Collezione Panza; Denis Curti, Director, Casa Dei Tre Oci and Capri Photography Festival; Vasili Tsereteli, Director, Moscow Museum of Modern Art; Sabrina Van Der Ley, Director, Contemporary Art, Nasjonalmuseet in Oslo, and others

Photographic Resource Center, Instantly Yours/Off the Fridge, Boston, MA, Jan. 21 - Feb. 21, 2016, juried by Bruce Myren, Photographer, and Yorgos Efthymiadis, Founder, The Curated Fridge

Boston LGBTQIA Artist Alliance, Makeover, Samson Projects, Boston, MA, Oct. 2 - Nov. 30, 2015, juried by Dylan Hurwitz, Director, BLAA, and Committee Members

Hannah Bacol Busch Gallery, The Art of Money, hosted by JP Morgan Chase, August 29, 2015

Boston Biennial 2015, Atlantic Works Gallery, Jul.-Aug., 2015, juried by the Biennial Project 

Expressions Exhibition, Longford Art Photography, Cruthú Arts Festival, Ireland, July 23-26, 2015, juried by Shelley Corcoran, Program Director, Longford Arts
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Incubarte 7 International Art Festival, June 18-July 21, 2015, Valencia, Spain, juried by Javier Marisco, Festival Director

Photo Annual Awards, Teplice, Czech Republic, opening ceremony May 30, 2015, juried by Tomáš Pospiszyl, Former Curator, The National Gallery in Prague, Jiří Jaskmanický, Director, Czech Center of Photography, and Radek Burda, Editor-in-Chief, Art Photo Magazine
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ArtVenice 3, Via Garibaldi, Italy, May 4, 2015, Opening Week of The Venice Biennale 56, juried by the Biennial Project 

Photo Annual Awards, Teplice, Czech Republic, opening ceremony May 31, 2014, juried by Tomáš Pospiszyl, Former Curator, The National Gallery in Prague, Jiří Jaskmanický, Director, Czech Center of Photography, and Radek Burda, Editor-in-Chief, Art Photo Magazine

Biennial Roadshow Marfa, El Cosmico, April 4, 2014, juried by the Biennial Project 

Hannah Bacol Busch Gallery, Americana Vigor, as part of Houston Foto Fest 2014: Fifteenth International Biennial of Photography & Photo Related Art, Mar. - Oct. 2014 

Photo Nights Boston, Photorama, Boston Center for the Arts, October 3, 2013, juried by Robert Klein, Director, Robert Klein Gallery
 
Panopticon Gallery, What I Did On My Summer Vacation, Sep. 2013 - Jan. 2014, juried by Jim Fitts, Founder, PhotoWeenie.com, and Anne DeVito, Co-Owner, Panopticon Gallery 

The Bascom, American Art Today: Figures, Sep. 2013 - Jan. 2014, juried by Jonathan Stuhlman, Curator of American Art, Mint Museum of Art 

Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Post-, Thesis Exhibition, May 2013

New York Photo Festival, SANDY: Devastation, Document, Drive, The POWERHOUSE Arena, Arena, Brooklyn, NY, Feb. - Mar. 2013
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Arsenal Center for the Arts, 30 Under 30 Juried Exhibition, Sep. - Oct. 2012, juried by Kathy Halamka and Natacha Sochat, Directors and Co-Founders, NK Gallery, Boston
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Vermont Center for Photography, Street Exhibition, March 2012, juried by Joshua Farr, Gallery Director, Vermont Center for Photography

NK Gallery, Boston, MA, National Juried Exhibition, January 2012, juried by Kathy Halamka and Natacha Sochat, Directors and Co-Founders, NK Gallery

Kiernan Gallery, Lexington, VA, Street Stories Exhibition, Nov. - Dec. 2011, juried by Kat Kiernan, Founder and Director, Kiernan Gallery and Don't Take Pictures

Vermont Center for Photography, Low Tech / No Tech, Nov. - Dec. 2011, juried by Joshua Farr, Gallery Director, Vermont Center for Photography

Zullo Gallery, A Second Look: Selected Artists from the Juried Exhibition, Nov. 2011 - Jan. 2012, juried by William F. Pope, Executive Director, Zullo Gallery

Zullo Gallery, 17th Annual Juried Exhibition, Sep. - Nov. 2011, juried by William F. Pope, Executive Director, Zullo Gallery 

Photographic Resource Center, Boston, MA, Silent Auction, October 15, 2011, juried by George Slade, Curator, Photographic Resource Center

Lincoln Arts Project Gallery, Fuck Yeah, America, July 2011, juried by Pat Falco and Elliot Anderson, Directors, Lincoln Arts Project

awards, fellowships, scholarships

2016 Stuart Abelson Graduate Research Fellowship
Finalist, Athens Photo Festival 2015-2018 
Finalist, Julia Margaret Cameron Award, 2014, 2015
Graduate Merit Award, Columbia College Chicago, 2014-2017 
Anne Louise Barrett Fellowship, 2014-2015 

art fairs

Photo London, 2021
Yakushima Photography Festival, Japan, 2020
Photo LA, 2020
​PULSE Art Fair, Miami Beach, 2019
Satellite Art Show, New York City, 2019
Photolux Festival, Lucca, Italy, 2019
SUWON International Photo Festival, South Korea, 2019
Mt. Rokko International Photography Festival, Japan, 2019
Auckland Festival of Photography, New Zealand, 2019
European Month of Photography, Berlin, 2018
Photo Independent, Los Angeles, 2018
LA Art Show, 2018
Artissima, Turin, 2017 (participating space)
FlashPoint Boston, 2017
International Biennial of Fine Art and Documentary Photography, Berlin, 2016
Houston Foto Fest 2016, 2014 (participating space)
Cruthú Arts Festival, Ireland, 2015
Incubarte 7 International Art Festival, Valencia, 2015

press

Yale Review, June 2022
New Art Examiner (UK), Sep. 2021
The Eye of Photography, May 2021
F-STOP Magazine, May 2021
Artsy
​Vogue Italia 
South Bend Tribune, June 2018
​Northwest Indiana Times, June 2018 
Dig the Dunes, June 2018
The Advocate, January 2018
The Charlotte Observer, June 2017
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CLT Tales, June 2017
Art Olympia catalog, 2017
ArtAscent Art & Literature Journal, Portraits, February 2017 
Arte Laguna 16.17 catalog, 2017
LensCulture
Arte Laguna 15.16 catalog, 2016
Artsy, FRESH! The Modern Portrait, JanKossen Contemporary, 2016
Expressions, Longford Art Photography catalog, 2015


published features, columns, reviews 

2017-18 AICA/Creative Capital Art Writing Workshop (Mentor: Holland Cotter, New York Times) 


Photograph
Ayana V. Jackson: Take Me to the Water, November/December 2019
Joel-Peter Witkin: From the Studio, July/August 2019
Rafael Soldi: Life Stand Still Here, May/June 2019

Lenscratch 
Daniel W. Coburn: Becoming a Specter, June 2018

PDN, Photo of the Day
New Images from John Cyr, Darkroom Romantic, May 2018

Wall Street International
Andy Mattern, June 2019
Nico Krijno, June 2019
John Cyr, April 2018
Melanie Willhide, October 2017

The ARTery at WBUR 
The Nields at Passim: Home is Where the Art Is, November 13, 2013 
“Aatsinki” —Documenting the Harsh Beauty of Living Off the Finnish Land, January 27, 2014
Kate Weare Company Dances About Desire, Complex Relationships, and—Oh, Yeah—Sex, February 25, 2014 
Robert Pinsky and Vijay Iyer Get in Rhythm Together, March 12, 2014 
30th Annual Boston LGBT Film Festival: An Eclectic Mix, Heavy on the G, April 1, 2014 
“Manakamana” at The Brattle is Transporting, May 17, 2014 
The Roxbury Youth Orchestra Brings Its Revolution of Hope to the MFA, June 17, 2014
Adults at Play: Figment Boston Comes to the Greenway this Weekend, July 25, 2014

Art New England 
Medical Art: Lifesaving Fashion, November/December 2013
Collectdotgive.org: The Gift of Art that Keeps on Giving Back, November/December 2013
Innovation and Heritage: Photography in New England, January/February 2014
Looking for Hope: The New Orleans Drawing Project 2006-2013, March/April 2014 
Within the Hay, Jamie Wyeth, September/October 2014 

Big Red & Shiny 
“What you call a ghetto, I call home.” Bruce Davidson’s East 100th Street at the Museum of Fine Arts, February 11, 2013
Bruce Davidson: Witness at Robert Klein Gallery and Ars Libri, February 25, 2013
Guillermo Srodek-Hart’s “Interiors” and Lynn Saville’s “Vacancy” at Gallery Kayafas, March 13, 2013
Me Love You Long Time (MLYLT) at Mills Gallery, March 18, 2013
A New Idea for New Topographics: Toshio Shibata, “Constructed Landscapes” at the Peabody Essex Museum, April 30, 2013 
Visual Poetics: David Hilliard’s Photographic Tale at Carroll and Sons Gallery, May 05, 2013
Flash Forward Festival—Cultivated: New Photography from New England in the traditional style, May 22, 2013 
Charland/Stark: Backscatter and Still/Life at Gallery Kayafas, May 29, 2013 
Let’s Play “Dress Up”: the Flash Forward Festival comes to Panopticon Gallery, June 10, 2013 
Doing queer photography by photographing queer doings: On the carnal strategies of Catherine Opie and Collier Schorr, June 17, 2013
In Conversation: Photographic Identity in Modern African American Art, July 01, 2013
Harold Feinstein’s Coney Island Summer: On view at Panopticon Gallery, July 22, 2013 
Pre-Existing Condition: At Yellow Peril Gallery, July 29, 2013 
An Enduring Vision: Photographs from the Lane Collection, August 05, 2013 
Eija-Liisa Ahtila: Olentoja, September 27, 2013 
Vivian Maier: A Woman’s Lens, November 26, 2013 
John Coplans: Hands, January 22, 2014 
David Taylor: Working the Line, March 11, 2014
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Ain’t Bad Magazine 
Painting with Light: Remarks on a Studio Visit with Jo Sandman, November 10, 2013 
Caleb Charland, Beyond Here, February 5, 2014


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  • About
  • BURY ME IN SHOC KING PINK
  • Wo/men
  • Nobody Knows
  • politicollage
  • Waiting for Leonora
  • Contact