Love Is All Around Us.

Photo Essay by Julia Mena

In a city as isolating as New York, it can be easy to feel a lack of love in the atmosphere. With everyone rushing to where they need to be, avoiding eye contact along the way, wearing noise canceling headphones, and casually overlooking deadly hazards, connecting with strangers seems like an idea that's only just that… an idea. 

But what happens when you are prompted to search for love? Do you begin to notice it? The palm-connected lovers, the nuzzled necks, the protective fathers, and the dog moms, or the dancing children; When you look around, you question if it's always been there, or if you’ve just never paid attention to it, perhaps even avoiding it. The reality is Love encompasses us, it's everywhere and all we had to do was open our eyes to witness the micro acts that keep the heart of the city pumping and alive.

After being inspired by Richard Renaldi’s “Touching Strangers,” I sought out to recreate the familiarity and casualness of his photos, while managing to make it my own. Through a series of photos depicting intimate moments on the streets of New York, and a portfolio section for which I posed strangers, I have compiled what I consider to be proof of my final thesis that Love, indeed, Is All Around Us.