“Rafael Cardenas takes on the role as a 21st century documentarian and as interpreter of visual events that reverberate and sustain a mythical Los Angeles that owes its tempo to its peoples and to the wavelengths of light that have been captured through the lens of his perceptive vision.”
- Harry Gamboa Jr. from the book, “Mas Aca.”

Rafael Cardenas

Born in Jalicso, Mexico. Raised in East Los Angeles.
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Rafael Cardenas has always been driven by the creative process that fueled him through decades of artistic vacillation. From poetry to hip hop lyricist, theater actor to film, he has refined his love for the importance of living in the moment. Currently, his life of observation/creation has inspired him to document the “moment” through the lens. His photography embodies all the modes of artistic expression he has lived through, combined with the life experience of the neighborhood that molded him. In his work you can find narrative, poetry, theater, and the drama that all those practices cultivate. You can also find a connection and understanding of his surroundings that can only come from someone that has lived within those spaces and moments being captured. This allows him to interpret his subjects with inherent empathy. Thus giving his work an honest quality that is hard to find, especially in a community highly stigmatized by outsiders.