Odeno Makomenaw

Artist Statement

Aanii and hello! I am an Anishinaabe artist living in New Haven, Connecticut. I work with photographing the movement of light. I am interested in the way any type of light interacts with objects or people. I find purpose with every photo by composing the way light is implemented. Light is in almost every kind of photo, but I try to find ways to tell a story within a picture. Most of my photographs illustrate a story based on the light and the location of the photo. I look for places that capture light in new or different ways that develop a meaning behind the photo. I choose the locations to add to the story that I want to tell.

During the editing process my primary focus is on the contrast and saturation of the lighting in the scene. You can find me experimenting with how different scenes look with different cameras. Some include an old digital camera, my phone, and my Nikon camera. I want people to experience emotions like nostalgia, hope, and longing through my photographs. I believe that lighting creates a huge impact on the viewer’s understanding of the photo. From limited light to colored lights, all create a story that is explored through a single photograph.

Over the course of The View From Here program, I learned to focus on the detailed decisions to create a photograph.  

— Odeno Makomenaw, Engineering and Science University Magnet School ’27 

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