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maya

@mayavanos

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lightly/unedited analog archives of 2011-2024… & so on
@unioftheartslondon @lcclondonphoto

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oli sykes of bring me the horizon @ outbreak fest; 20th anniversary of count your blessings

july 2026 on a disposable camera, altered in ps

when i was a tween scene queen in the late 00s i would go to the apple store in the mall to blast bmth’s first 2 albums, count your blessings and suicide season, on the store macbooks and walk away frowning so i could “scare the preps”; i was obsessedddd in middle school and i thought listening to this band made me so badass (lowkey it did) so naturally i literally yelped when i saw the gig announcement. after all, i had to wait 18 years to see them, in a foreign country no less (thx mom for never letting me go to gigs/warped tour but i digress…). about halfway through their set, a minute or so into “fifteen fathoms, counting” i became so emotionally overwhelmed by the fact that i was *actually* witnessing them play songs that have been so important to me for nearly two decades, after waiting nearly two decades, that i began uncontrollably sobbing — which was probably hilarious to see considering the kind of music they were playing. to be fair though i had printed their myspace photos and taped them to my locker i was so downbad lol so to be this close irl felt like a fever dream.

…anyways i really don’t know what else to say besides ily olisaurus and bmth &hearts; rawrrrrrr kthxbye XD (i literally ownz dis pic)

sorry hahahaha taken in Manchester, UK by @mayavanos

2k

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2 months ago

mother from my late father’s last birthday dinner // i made us vegan steak out of beets only for my father to tell me “i’m sure it’s delicious but i am traumatized by my russian grandmother force-feeding me borscht so i cannot eat beets” — i think that is the only thing ever in my life that he wouldn’t do for me. my mother hates vegan food but she stepped up for him so my two hour-long kitchen struggle wouldn’t go to waste. this photo is of the moment right after she said “you know what, that’s actually not terrible”.

can’t remember what this was on

february 2022 taken in San Antonio, Texas by @mayavanos

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7 months ago

inna for “beyond the broadcast” pt 2 // BA commercial photography x national portrait gallery collab

spotlighting the same displaced women i photographed for last year’s “hopes and dreams beyond exile”, beyond the broadcast is a slow motion video portrait series that features their responses to an interview questioning how they feel they are depicted in global/mainstream media — for some, neglected; for others, abused. it also serves as a platform for each subject to speak about their people’s unique identities that are oft overlooked.

shot on sony fx3 @ london college of communication, cut and graded in davinci

january 2026 taken in London College of Communication by @mayavanos

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7 months ago

liza for “beyond the broadcast” pt 1 // BA commercial photography x national portrait gallery collab

spotlighting the same displaced women i photographed for last year’s “hopes and dreams beyond exile”, beyond the broadcast is a slow motion video portrait series that features their responses to an interview questioning how they feel they are depicted in global/mainstream media — for some, neglected; for others, abused. it also serves as a platform for each subject to speak about their people’s unique identities that are oft overlooked.

shot on sony fx3 @ london college of communication, cut and graded in davinci

january 2026 taken in London College of Communication by @mayavanos

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7 months ago

farah, inna, maryam & liza for my series “hopes and dreams beyond exile” @ palestine house & cream dream; my proudest and most emotional work i’ve ever completed. it was an immense pleasure and honor to both capture and collaborate with such beautiful, strong women who shared some of the most important perspectives i’ve ever had the privilege to bear witness to. as part of my course assignment at @unioftheartslondon @lcclondon working with london-based creative production agency @attrayler.co i was tasked with telling a story through photography and/or film. i chose to provide a platform for refugees and those stuck in nonconsensual diaspora to tell their own stories — to share what reflected their sentiments for their homelands whilst experiencing displacement. mainstream media has decided that they do not matter, and i’ve long felt the desperate urge to take part in shattering that narrative with (for now) experimental image-making.

i’m hoping and dreaming of a free palestine, ukraine, sudan, congo, and all other global civilizations & peoples experiencing genocide and violent oppression. 🖤

portra 400 on medium format yashica mat

june 2025 taken in LCC, University of the Arts London by @mayavanos

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10 months ago

(wip) edited together some clips of my coursemates for a davinci workshop last week <3 *will also post graded version once that’s done*

shot (not by me) on sony fx3 in lcc studio — i’m new to davinci so be nice!

featuring jasper, yana, moi, rachel, rose, shantae, saina, pau, lee, kuro, karina, del, beam, pareece, sofia, dino, francesca, & alistair taken in London College of Communication by @mayavanos

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10 months ago

kieran @ mccallum high // this was on my first DSLR at age 15 & according to the accompanying facebook caption, i thought it was the “coolest picture ever”; he was pressing his face on the window of a door whilst i shot it from outside and got lucky with the lighting, leading to a reflection of the outdoors

olympus dslr, cant remember which model

november 2011 taken in Austin, Texas by @mayavanos

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a year ago

natalia for borzoi’s “big pink” music video bts

ultramax 400 probably?

july 2018 taken in Spider House Ballroom by @mayavanos

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a year ago

holly & i in the gravitron ride @ wurstfest… youth gone by

disposable camera i think?

november 2017 taken in New Braunfels, Texas by @mayavanos

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a year ago

leya for a test shot

rare digital moment; sony a7 iv

june 2025 taken in CreamDream by @mayavanos

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a year ago

sabrina carpenter @ the o2

ilford hp5 on my olympus trip 35 point n shoot

march 2025 taken in London, United Kingdom by @mayavanos

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a year ago

juanita & grammy in the ICU // whilst i’ve been working on a project pertaining to survival & living, i’ve also had death on my mind, particularly those of my loved ones. when i took this photo, my dad’s mother, whom we referred to as “grammy”, had been on her deathbed and she passed soon after. i am not sure why i choose to document such painful, personal moments — perhaps out of self-torture as i force myself to relive each one when i come across them, or to share my grief in a way i guess i think matters(?) — but alas. it was the first time i’d ever held someone’s hand as they died and unfortunately wouldn’t be the last. there is something about that experience that i don’t think many people who’ve never been through it realize is so terribly bittersweet. the dying often want you to be there as they depart but they don’t always realize the toll it could take on your psyche; you desperately want to be there and yet you desperately do not. it’s the biggest decision one could ever be forced to make and you’ll remember that pressure forever. i guess my grammy’s caretaker, juanita, knew this and refused to leave her side. maybe i took this photo because i wanted to memorialize the emotional sacrifices we make and the unwavering love one might hope to receive in their final moments.

ultramax 400

february 2020 taken in San Antonio, Texas by @mayavanos

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a year ago