Neighborly Love

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND MEXICO SHARE A LONG HISTORY TOGETHER THAT ISN’T ALWAYS A SHINING EXAMPLE OF NEIGHBORLY LOVE. WE CAN THINK OF THE TEXAS REVOLUTION AND THE MEXICAN-AMERICAN WAR, WHICH BOTH TOOK PLACE IN THE 19TH CENTURY, BUT THE MORE RECENT ISSUES WITH DRUG AND WEAPON SMUGGLE AND ILLEGAL EMIGRATION. STILL THE TWO COUNTRIES NEED EACH OTHER AND THE BALANCE OF THEIR LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP MORE OFTEN LEANS TOWARD THE LOVE SIDE THAN OTHERWISE.

There really isn’t anything that much out of the ordinary when it comes to the relationship between Mexico and the USA. They pretty much behave like every other neighboring countries do. It’s mostly a harmonious balance between love and hate, tolerance and the acceptance that your neighbor really isn’t going to move anytime soon. True some issues are a bit harder to overcome, but those are mostly isolated incidents and border disputes. We have moved on from territorial cat and dog fights. Yes, in case you hadn’t noticed it, when it comes to our close neighbors, we seem to have matured pretty well.

One of the best recent examples in this particular story is the one of Ivan Avila. His first name is a strong name. One that reminds of royalty, warriors and champions. A name of survivors. His family name gives away that Ivan has a Latin background. Indeed, Ivan Avila is of Mexican origin. He was born and raised in the State of Zacatecas, Mexico, in the year 1976. he spend the first 32 years of his life in Mexico until he decided in 2008 to move to the United States. And in this vast new territory he chose well as he settles down in San Francisco. It was there, inspired by the architecture, the landscapes, the food and the people, that his passion for photography budded.

Now, a little over four years later, Ivan Avila resides in the exciting city of Las Vegas. It is here where he really started to build his career as a photographer. With his motto that nothing is impossible when you do what you love most, he first focused on fashion and wedding photography, but he has rapidly included male photography to his skill set as well. About his work and career, Ivan says: “As a photographer I have any goals and a very long way. But I love being behind the camera and capturing the right moment or the perfect scene. I think that to achieve a good image it is essential to have harmony between the model and the photographer. If so, the end result will always be fantastic.”

Ivan Avila proofs that his believes are true in his recent work with Matt Mortensen. Originally from San Diego, Matt was an asset to his High School and College basketball teams where he had the opportunity to travel all over the country. Possibly tat is why he eventually moved out of California and settles, just like Ivan, in Las Vegas. Holding a B.S. in Philosophy, 26-years old Matt has find a good balance in his life. He likes to stay active and work out, and he likes to relax when needed which he does with his guitar and harmonica or simply on the couch in from of the tele watching some of his favorite reality shows such as Survivor and the Biggest Loser. Together with Ivan, Matt ventured into the Nevada desert for this particular shoot, withstanding several hours of severe temperatures. Now if that is not a great example of Mexican and American neighborly love, I don’t know anymore. –BM-

IVAN AVILA PHOTOGRAPHY | BEAUTIFULMAG
MATT MORTENSEN | BEAUTIFULMAG

Comments

[Ron]

Beautiful images !

[iama{GAY}tekeeper]

LOTS of LOVE from me!