Photographer Erika Balestra is the Edge of Humanity Magazine contributor of this photo essay. From the project ‘Disconnection’. To see Erika ’s body of work, click on any photograph.

Church interior, NYC — Woman alone in a pew, illuminated by stained glass, looking at her phone. September 2018.

Wall Street, NYC — Man standing on a barrier, reading his phone while tourists pass by. September 2018.

“Disconnection” was born in the streets and public spaces of New York City, a place where human energy and global diversity constantly collide. Guided by Ed Kashi and Ashley Gilbertson (VII Photo Agency), this series explores the paradox of our relationship with technology: the same device that can pull us away from the present moment is also the bridge that connects us to the people we love, preserves our memories, and allows us to create from anywhere in the world. In these images, isolation and connection exist side by side, revealing the complex ways we inhabit modern life.

9/11 Memorial, NYC — Young boy recording names on the memorial, focused on the device in his hands. September 2018.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC — Three visitors sitting under a marble sculpture, all on their phones. September 2018.

One World Observatory, NYC — Visitors photographing the skyline, each absorbed in their own screen. September 2018.

Lower Manhattan, NYC — Father and daughter laughing together over a phone while on a spinning ride. September 2018

Wall Street, NYC — Group of women in a crowd, each engaged with their phone or camera. September 2018.

Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC — Older man facing a sculpture while looking down at his phone. September 2018.

Chelsea, NYC — Man taking a portrait of a smiling woman while another woman walks by scrolling on her phone. September 2018.

Artist Statement

I am a documentary photographer whose work navigates the intersection between human connection, cultural identity, and the deep tensions of everyday life. My projects move between personal narratives and broad sociocultural stories, always with a profound respect for the people and places I photograph.

Although I`ve work in different places, I turned my lens toward my own country, revealing the infinite contrasts of Mexico and its people: humor, mystery, devotion, struggle, and celebration. I approach these stories with an anthropological eye, immersing myself in beliefs, traditions, and places until they reveal their truths.

As founder of WITNESS Visual Storytellers, we have built an educational platform surrounded by great photographers and editors, always seeking to generate memory and give meaning to time. For me, the camera is my excuse to live things I would never experience without it — to witness how things change when you truly know and engage with them. Photography keeps my feet on the ground, anchored to the human reality, always searching for something that makes me grow and nourishes my soul.

Biography

Erika Balestra (Mexico City, 1980) is a documentary photographer and founder of WITNESS Visual Storytellers, an educational platform dedicated to storytelling through photography.

Her work focuses on cultural identity, human connection, and the creation of visual narratives that preserve memory and give meaning to time.