ABRA CATALINA
Anthology Series
This series documents our shared creative journey that has inspired so much of my work. Abra’s openness, patience, and artistic spirit have left an impression on me.
Abra and I first crossed paths a few years ago, after quietly following each other’s journeys online. I was immediately drawn to her effortless sense of style and her calm, grounded energy — the kind of presence that makes you feel at ease without saying much. Over the next few years, we found ourselves spending a lot of time together, which naturally led to countless portraits of her (some planned, most improvised) captured in all sorts of unexpected places and moods.
We traveled up and down California, road-tripped through the layered landscapes and surreal realities of Italy, and most recently, she joined me in Japan as my assistant for a shoot that tested both our patience and our creativity. Her insight, steadiness, and ability to see things differently are things I deeply value and never take for granted.
Like most creative partnerships, we didn’t always see eye to eye, but that tension often made the moments we shared even more meaningful. Looking back, what stands out isn’t just the images we made, but the quiet, in-between moments (the laughter, the long drives, the shared silences...) that turned collaboration into genuine connection.
Abra is a true Californian at heart — easygoing yet deeply perceptive, with an innate empathy and a natural pull toward the coast.
I tend to gravitate toward those whose temperaments oppose mine; they anchor me in ways I can’t quite explain.
She carries that quiet, sun-warmed confidence that seems to belong only to people who’ve grown up by the ocean. Through her eyes, I came to see the real California — not the postcard version or the romanticized dream of the West, but the one shaped by its people: grounded, diverse, imperfect, and alive with quiet stories.