About
María Elena Valdés (she/her) is a Mexican photographer, artist, and creative director.
With a focus on documentary work, Valdés connects deeply with her subjects and their universes, capturing a raw yet quirky reality full of empathy and curiosity. Her core is rooted in storytelling.
Known for her editorial publications such as Muxelandia (2018), Ruth (2017), and Diario Pandemia (2020), Valdés effectively tells the story of the human experience through different contexts and cultures.
Her creative documentary work is balanced by a portfolio of commercial clients for whom she advises, develops, and executes visual concepts. She builds custom teams to produce aesthetic content that allows her to communicate each narrative in an engaging and unique way.
María Elena’s work has been showcased at exhibitions in New York, Mexico City, Miami, Austin, TX, Japan, and Thailand. She also has publications on editorial platforms including Nowness, The New York Times Magazine, Garage Magazine, VICE, L'Uomo Vogue, Vogue Latin America, Harper’s Bazaar US, and Cultura Colectiva, among others.
María spends much of her time between Mexico and New York City. She’s open to commissions—please feel free to reach out with any project proposals, collaboration ideas, or questions about her work.