Ethan Christian Torneros

Eyes on the City 2021: City and Memories

Artist Statement

The People and The Pandemic

In exploring districts in San Francisco such as the Fillmore, Tenderloin, South of Market, and surrounding areas, this project captures individuals, civilians, and landmarks to further examine the weight of the Corona Virus on the city. Seeking to provide a narrative for these experiences through photography the images depict the daily struggles of the impact towards life as a citizen and the development of the city. Pulling influence from photographers such as Garry Winogrand and Janet Delany who utilize depth and layers in their photographs to provide a story through their format and compositions. These photographs provide a visual representation of the emotion and discomfort in adapting to the pandemic. Mainly through street photography and portraits, these images will help document the current means of transportation, construction, and daily life throughout San Francisco. 


Artist Bio

Growing up I found a lot of interest in cinematography and how scenes in movies were composed. It wasn’t until high school where I took my first film photography class where I started to develop a hobby for film photography. I love taking portraits and landscapes, but I find this hobby most enjoyable when I don’t have a set idea of what I want to be taking pictures of. Learning on the Pentax K1000, I tried many different lenses and filters and throughout high school and college I had always wanted to try new tricks with the camera such as double exposures, long exposures, and playing around with movement. I have never owned a digital camera because I enjoy this type of photography because the end product always gives me a sense of nostalgia due to the small grains and composition of film photography. Most of my favorite pictures that I have taken on my camera were mistakes like half exposures and finding issues with the developing process. My hometown is Danville, California and I am a Finance Major, Economics Minor Undergrad here at the University of San Francisco. I love taking photographs and focusing on format and composition hoping to provide a story with pleasing visuals and underlying themes.