I am Helynn Ospina, a photographer, artist, and storyteller. My life and work resonate with the momentary, transitional energy of liminal spaces. From the light or shadow cast upon an object, to wrinkled sheets, rolling fog, or windblown curtains, my images vibrate with a sense of possibility, the echoes of past experiences, and the mystery of moments yet to come.
I was born in Colombia but raised in the United States. My early years were colored by my experience as an undocumented immigrant. Being a foreigner to both my parents’ culture and that of my American classmates, my identity was shaped more by searching than finding. This fueled a thoughtful curiosity that continues to inform my process to this day.
This perspective and upbringing led me to pursue an unconventional path. I first joined the U.S. Marines and then embarked on a career in scientific research. The inherent challenge in these pursuits was a large part of their appeal, pushing me to test both my physical and intellectual boundaries. My work in biotech also catered to my detail-focused, investigative nature—an aspect of my personality that had long inspired an interest in photography. What started as a childhood hobby eventually grew into a more nuanced understanding of lens-based art, leading me to yet another unexpected vocation.
As my artistic process has evolved, my photography has been influenced by discovering my family’s indigenous ancestry and the concept of animism—the belief that every object, living or inert, has its own spiritual energy. I aim to capture both the seen and the unseen, the specific and the universal. Each of my images speaks not only to the moment I’ve captured but to the shared experience of our human existence. I view each photo not as a finished product but as the beginning of a conversation, an invitation for the viewer to find a piece of their own story reflected in my work.
Over the past decade, my work has been celebrated by organizations such as Communication Arts and has been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. My commercial clients include industry-leading brands like Airbnb, WeWork, and Martha Stoumen Wines.
