Richard Bonvissuto: Visual Storyteller

Hello! Welcome to my website. My introduction to photography began when my mother gave me my first camera (a Kodak 110 instamatic) for Christmas. The year was 1979. I was nine years old. The seed was planted and my journey into photography began. Little did I know that this gift would set me on a lifelong journey into photography. It would take several more years, a move to California and me returning back to my hometown of Buffalo, NY before I would find my photographic path come to fruition.

I first discovered the Holga camera in 1996 after seeing a small article in an Esquire magazine. It was at that moment that my love affair with toy cameras began. I had no idea the impact these cameras would have on me or my photography in the years to come. I have been using these cameras as a photographic tool ever since.

These images represent a time capsule of sorts, allowing me to reflect on the memories of my past. They are encounters both with strangers and with people that I became very close to. All have contributed into shaping me into the person that I am today.

I have always been guided by my intuition during my life and in my artistic endeavors. An example, when I was starting college I had no idea what I wanted to study. I remember suddenly waking from a dream one night and in that moment I knew I would study filmmaking in college. Another journey began. I graduated from State University of New York’s College at Buffalo earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media Study with a concentration in filmmaking.

I moved to California after graduating and began working in the film industry for New Line Cinema in Post Production. My love for photography never left me but instead fell into the background of my life during this period of time. After living in Los Angeles for several years, I moved back to Buffalo, NY. This is when I began to focus on my photography with serious passion.

I find inspiration from many artistic influences who include: Mark Sink, Michael Ackerman, Sylvia Plachy, Sally Mann, Annie Leibovitz, Francis Bacon and the incomparable Frank Okenfels.

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