Francesca Beltran

Today’s Brand New Art is Mexican photographer and writer Francesca Beltran. Living in New York, Fran served as Editor in Chief and Creative Director of ICON Magazine and already has work published in an impressive resume of titles including Vice, Nylon, i-D and Harper’s Bazaar. Francesca’s passions span music, travel and style, and her work reflects this. Interviewing bands, photographing festivals and beautiful places, reviewing live shows, art exhibitions and other cultural events, we have to admit we’re pretty jealous of Fran’s job. Shooting on film and describing her photography style as ‘trial and error’, Fran’s images have a raw and personal feel to them, so we can imagine we’re right at work with her! We chatted to Fran about her music obsession, becoming and writer and photographer, and living as an artist in New York:

Introduce your work to us in three words…

What I adore.

I discovered your work in your feature on Austin Psyche Festival for C-Heads, what’s it like photographing festivals? Do you find music to be an influence?

Music is my life. Literally. Everything I do and have ever done revolves and is inspired by the bands I love. Shooting concerts can be hard, because sometimes you don’t get to enjoy the show; I prefer doing what I did for C-Heads, which is capturing the overall experience. Through these kind of photos I want the viewer to feel as if she/he were there too, and hopefully get a ticket next year.

There’s a lot of great looks in that photo series too, is fashion an inspiration for you in anyway? Do you find yourself seeking out people with interesting style?

Not fashion per se, I don’t know anything about designers, but I’m greatly inspired by style. How people can make a statement or transmit their personalities through the way they dress, I think that’s incredibly interesting. And yes, I’m always attracted to people who have their own unique style.

I loved your series on Miss Suki as well, she seemed like a fascinating subject and the photos were beautiful. What draws you to characters like Ariel and how do you know who will make a great subject?

I am drawn to people who seem genuine. I met Ariel a long time ago and besides thinking that she’s gorgeous I was always fascinated by her personality and her drawings. I just love being around creative people. I try to surround myself with people that inspire me and that usually leads to some great collaborations.

You’re a writer as well as a photographer, do you feel that helps give more of a voice to your images?

Definitely, I think they often compliment each other. However I also think that it depends on the case, because sometimes one can cast a shadow on the other. For example, it’s very hard for me to add words to my landscape photography; I feel there are certain images that speak louder on their own.

How did you get into writing?

I was once offered a concert ticket in exchange of a review of the show and it pretty much changed my life. It had never even occurred to me that I could go to shows and meet the bands I adore “for work.” After that day I started calling myself a writer and, spoiler alert: people will believe anything you say. I’m also into creative writing, but that’s something I’ve explored mostly in private.

You use a range of styles in your photography, do you feel the more work you do the more you’re finding your own style? Or do you prefer experimenting?

Honestly at the beginning I just shot everything around me and hoped for the best (I shoot film so it was literally a hit or miss). It took me a long time to see myself as a “real” photographer. Now for the first time I’m starting to actually plan shoots and write down ideas for videos and stuff, but I still love the spontaneity of photography and I will always be obsessed with shooting landscapes. I think the whole finding my own style part has been very hard because it took me a while to realise that my work is a reflection of who I am and that therefore I shouldn’t wish for it to resemble someone else’s. I still find inspiration in other photographers but I no longer compare my work to theirs, which was a big step.

Across both your writing and photography you cover a wide range of topics, e.g. travel, culture, music, people, etc., Do you have a favourite?

I think they all go together in a way, but I would definitely choose music and traveling. There’s nothing greater for me than going somewhere new and meeting a band I love. When I was little I used to worship all these bands and wonder how they were like in real life. So each time I get to meet someone I admire is very surreal, because it is no longer as a fan, but as a professional and that feels really nice.

How do you find living in New York as an artist, I imagine it’s pretty inspiring?

It’s both incredibly inspiring and very draining. Everything is very extreme in this tiny island; one day I wake up feeling on top of the world, literally, and the next day I wonder what the hell am I doing here. The good always outweighs the bad though, and I’ve read enough biographies in my life to know that every human being who has ever done something creative has felt the same way. It’s all about moving past the fear.

Looking at your bio it seems as though you’ve already achieved a lot! What’s next for you?

Thank you! I have many goals right now and every day I wake up with a new one, but at the top of the list there’s interviewing Morrissey and Sufjan Stevens (I’m obsessed with his new album), going on tour with a band to shoot photos and videos, and getting paid by someone like National Geographic to travel around the world. As you can see, it’s always all about music and traveling. I’m also now starting to make videos. I think videos are the future.

The theme for our next issue is 'muse', do you have a muse? I know you mention Patti Smith as an obsession, what do you love about her?

I just think she had an EXTRAORDINARY life that was the result of a lot of courage, talent and hard work. I’m always fascinated by truly confident people, because let’s face it, this world is harsh. It’s funny though because I had idealised her and I just recently finished reading Please Kill Me and it completely changed my idea of her. I realised she is a human being, like everyone else, and this was both heartbreaking and very encouraging. We’re all people. Nobody's perfect. So it’s okay to be yourself.

Finally I have to ask because I’m intrigued, what is ‘Coco VanWyngarden’?!

Haha! I moved to Milan right after high school with the dream of becoming a fashion designer. Once there I was traumatised by how common the name Francesca was so I made up a new one. The dream changed, of course, but the name remained. I chose it inspired by Marilyn Manson, of all people.