HANNA WONDMAGEGN

Cluster Photography & Print Exhibitor | 2025

 

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Hanna Wondmagegn is an Ethiopian-U.S. American visual storyteller from North Carolina, currently based in Harlem, New York City. She believes in intentional and empathetic storytelling, putting people first and allowing them to share their stories in the way they see fit. Through visual forms, she seeks to challenge single-story narratives while uplifting her story partners and viewers, encouraging them to both witness and imagine a life beyond the boundaries that society has set for them.

Her work is inspired by the everyday interactions and experiences of people, as well as their relationships with each other and their environments. She spends as much time engaging with, viewing, and supporting artistic mediums as she does creating, believing that life itself—the act of living—is as integral to the creation of art as the process of making it.

 

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When she isn’t working on a project or on assignment, she spends her free time wandering the city with her camera, capturing images that focus on the ephemeral and reveal a deeper truth about the viewer.

 

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“I grew up in an immigrant neighbourhood in East Charlotte, North Carolina, surrounded by rich culture, music, food, and languages from all over the world. Storytelling was—and continues to be—a common practice for passing down memory and history, and I quickly learned its role in disrupting and complicating narratives. It was in a high school journalism class that I was first given the tools to share these stories and challenge stereotypes about the communities I grew up with.”
— Hanna Wonmagegn
 
 

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ARTWORK AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE SOON

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“Too often, when I approach people, they ask, Why would anyone be interested in my story? That alone speaks to how many individuals and communities feel unrepresented or unheard in their daily lives. My visual work centres on those individuals and communities who are often misrepresented and left behind.

From dipping my toes in the water alongside fishers in Belize to speeding down highways with underground street racers in Durham, I’ve had the honour and privilege of glimpsing into the lives of many who have gifted a piece of their story to the world.”
— Hanna Wondmagegn
 

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“Beyond storytelling, I enjoy creating images that focus on the ephemeral and reveal a deeper truth about the viewer. A moment in time, a passing glance, a feeling of nostalgia—these themes, when visualised, require an attentiveness that comes from deeply engaging with life, challenging me to constantly reflect and practise being in the present.”
— Hanna Wondmagegn
 
 
 
 

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