Maya Davila: What was your first introduction to photography? Was this something you always wanted to do? 

Nafisah: This is really about to show my goddamn age. [Laughs] Back in the age when the Internet was still coming up, we had AOL, MySpace, and all of that other good stuff. I used to take profile pictures for myself and my friends. One of my siblings told me I was really good at it and should pursue it. And I was like, ‘You can do this for a living?’ 

MD: [Laughs]

N: Photography became my passion over time. Even when I would step away from it, I knew this was meant for me. I remember my parents taking pictures of me and my brother when we were kids, and we had this huge family photo album that I loved looking through. There was always a camera in my life, and I knew that photography was mine.

MD: That’s so sweet. In my attic, we have a huge bookcase full of photo albums that’s documented my family since the 80s. Before I even understood what photography was, I always appreciated how we had a collection of memories. It’s so special to watch the growth of the people in your life.

N: Just thinking back on these memories and how far I’ve come, no matter how much struggle we face as a creative to get to where we want to be, I wouldn’t change it for the world. This is what I love. I work retail and I hate it. But I can’t wait to get to where I want to be and get to my next goal. 

MD: Exactly. You really never know what someone is going through. I think back to 2 years ago when I cut off my parents for half a year and I was really struggling; at one point I had 20 cents to my name and I was like, ‘What am I gonna do?’ I used creative outlets to bring a sense of comfort. Yes, there’s so much stress trying to make it in an industry where it’s notoriously about who you know or just plain luck, but it’s also about perseverance and being authentic. 

N: Sometimes you gotta cut family off. They think they can treat you any type of way just because they’re family. Like no, actually, I don’t have to take this. 

MD: I hate when people say that blood makes you family. Like who am I, Vin Diesel?

N: [Laughs] My mom and my older sister raised me with tough love. One semester at FIT, they fucked me over with my financial aid, I suddenly owed over $2,000 near the end of the semester, so there was no time to hop on a plan or nothing. I was panicking, thinking I’d have to drop out. And they were like, ‘Bro shut up and get this shit done.’ I just wanted comfort for a second! Family can be your first bully. 

MD: That generational tough love is real. My grandma was reckless while raising my mom, but she eventually found Jesus and in her eyes, she’s a saint now apparently. [Laughs] I understand why my mom parents me the way she does, but sometimes I just wanna curl up into her lap and cry…to be a little kid again and have the comfort and warmth of a parent. Especially with moms, we have that bond where she literally carried us and we were literally connected.

N: Right? Okay, philosopher!

MD: [Laughs] Before we met, I stalked your Instagram and was like, ‘Who is this baddie?’ Your work is so powerful—it captures the intersectionality of Blackness, femininity, and queerness. Can you speak more about how your photography has evolved?

N: Back in the MySpace days, there was also a website called Bebo. A lot of the emo kids were on there, myself included. There were themed photo contests and I knew I could do some cool shit. It was so much fun putting my own interpretation of what they were looking for. That’s where I got into conceptual photography and portraits. I’d color coordinate outfits with my friends and I loved documenting our outfits, I swear these were the first fit pics, come on now!

MD: [Laughs] 

N: My family is really big on name-brand fashion and logos. That also shaped my love for fashion. But up until college, I mostly shot documentary-style. Through middle and high school, I’d capture me and my friends wilding out, going to parties and I would just click, click, click.

MD: What changed when you got to FIT?

N: In my second year, we did portfolio reviews with people who were associated with the school. There was one mentor named Justin who runs a photography education program called THE BRIDGE in Brooklyn that helps emerging photographers. He gave me more questions than he did answers, which made me sit there and think about what I wanted my photography to be. I know a lot of people assume fashion photography is just pretty ass pictures. But for me, fashion stems from culture and community. The queer community has its own style, Black culture has its own style, and so on. Justin said, “You have great photos, but where do you see yourself within your photos? When you look at your photos, how do you know, ‘Oh yeah, that’s my photo?’ What’s going to tell you apart from another photographer?” That really had me thinking. Other photographers are shooting Black women and I don’t want to be exactly like them…we all have our own different views of the world. I wanted to use my identity to show people that they’re not alone and give them the representation that they’ve always wanted to see, you know?

MD: Absolutely.

N: When I shoot, whether it’s portraits or fashion, there’s always queerness in that bitch. Blackness. I’m non-binary but mostly femme-presenting. Femininity draws me in— drag queens,  trans women, cis women, even men who embrace femininity. Everybody’s just so fucking gorgeous.

MD: The rejection of fitting into a binary is so powerful in fashion. Being queer, I love seeing our community abstract those concepts and just show up as their truest self, like this is who I am, you can either accept it or don’t. FIT pushed me out of my comfort zone, too. It made me rethink my work, to challenge myself. In 2LATE, I push for non-binary people and women to be our leading voices in writing and production. To be real, I can’t stand male photographers anymore, especially the ones who just want an excuse to photograph a woman partially or fully nude. There’s a certain power dynamic that some men take advantage of. Parts of our industry can be really disturbing. It’s important that we continue to create these safe spaces. 

N: Period, I love that so much. I hate that this industry gives men a platform who will dead exploit you. So many women I’ve worked with told me they feel comfortable with me. Meanwhile, male photographers be asking them on dates after shoots. Why do men do that? Please keep it professional. 

MD: Absolutely, men don’t know how to respect boundaries. Speaking of vulnerability, how do you approach self-portraits?

N: I bring myself into my work through small details. I love wearing extendo nails with crazy designs, which I hope to do more of. Bringing in Black culture with hoop earrings and grills, just showing appreciation for everything I’ve seen growing up that’ll make someone say, “That’s black as hell.” I need some gay ass shit in my photos too, you know? [Laughs] My work is very feminine, but I do enjoy bringing in hints of masculinity, like dressing powerful women in suits. That’s where the ‘me’ comes in. For this article’s shoot, I did this at home and I had so much fun doing it. I’ve never done nude self-portraits, but I’d been photographed nude in the wild, so I wasn’t too nervous. I think I take the best photos of myself. 

MD: We know ourselves best. 

N: Exactly. When I was shooting this, I made sure it was a night where nobody was home so they wouldn’t see me butt-ass naked. [Laughs] Figuring out placements of the yarn, exploring my body, and how I can edit the photos…this wasn’t like anything I’d done before so I was excited to do it. I knew this was gonna eat down. I’m so glad that you pushed me to do this.

MD: You look so beautiful in your photos. I love talking with you, I just feel a sense of comfort. We need to hang out!

N: I really wanna go to a POC queer party. I’ve never been to one. I went to Henrietta Hudson’s once, but it was just a whole bunch of white girls in there. Like where are the queer Black kids?

MD: I’ll go out with you. I feel safest surrounded by people who share my background.

N: It’s hard being around white people because I gotta watch what I say. At FIT, you never caught me saying the N-word unless I was with BSU, because I knew white people would take it as an invitation. 

MD: They completely miss the significance of the word.

N: And they stay biting off of everybody’s fucking culture. 

MD: The “clean girl” aesthetics? Lined lips, gloss, and hoops? I was like, ‘So where did that come from?’

N: Hello?! Hispanic women! It’s just like when white women “discovered” twist-outs and called it goddamn Mamma Mia! Hair.

MD: There’s no critical thinking. 

N: None. 

MD: Social media in general, is just so exhausting, especially with Trump back in office. The politics and erasure surrounding queer existence is terrifying. As a queer Black person, how do you feel about it?

N: These are fucking trying times. As a non-binary Black woman, I’m safer than a trans-Black woman. People need to take a step back and really hear what trans women are saying. They fought for the freedoms and rights we have today. We’re cooked. [Laughs] I only laugh because if I don’t then I’ll fucking cry. America is not great, America has never been great. I just wish people could mind their own fucking business. Why is the government in queer people’s business? Women’s business? Why are you making laws or taking away laws about our bodies? I think it’s going to keep getting scarier in these next 4 years. We need to build a community so we can be safe. I want to support and be involved in any way that I can. People are not listening to those who are in the most danger. But then when it’s their turn, now they want everybody to hear them.

MD: That’s the problem. They lose sight of the bigger picture and the queer umbrella that we all fall under. I just don’t understand why there is so much hatred towards our existence. 

N: Like, why are you so mad? We just want to live our lives. 

MD: This sounds mad cheesy, but at the end of the day, we are all human. We should just be building each other up.  

N: I wish we could all just be happy with ourselves and let the world fucking be. 

MD: Agreed. There’s a lot of internalization and hypocrisy. Those politicians who are so hell-bent on taking away queer rights are the same men who are curious or into gay or trans pornography behind closed doors. But then in public, they’re like, “I am a good Christian man, I love my wife and children and my dog,” or whatever. 

N: Tell it! Hypocrites. 

MD: We have to keep creating space for ourselves, especially as creatives. How do you approach that?

N: I think the best thing that I can do for my community is to show up through my art. I’m chronically on TikTok, and I’ve seen so much discourse about Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl performance. Some thought it was revolutionary and for others, it was absolutely trash. There’s been a lot of back and forth between people talking about that on my For You page. I don’t remember what page I was watching, but somebody was like, “You don't have to be a revolutionary, Kendrick’s whole discography is about where he’s come from and how he grew up being Black and that’s revolutionary enough.” Through expressing himself, he got to where he wanted to be. That’s what I want to continue to do with my work. I want to show up for all of my communities to bring a sense of relatability and joy. Also sticking together, just making sure queer people and trans people are safe. There’s power in numbers. I just wanna make sure that I can push my work out there enough so that people see that and maybe escape from what’s going on, even if it’s just a few seconds.

MD: That was beautiful. Thank you so much, Nafisah. 

N: Thank you!