Luis Palma

Luis González Palma (born 1957, Guatemala) is a prominent Latin American photographer. Initially trained as an architect, he turned to photography in the 1980s, creating hand-painted gelatin silver prints that captured haunting images of the Maya Indians. His portraits, often featuring theatrical costumes symbolizing ancient rituals, reveal the pain and dignity of the Mayan people who have endured centuries of suffering. González Palma’s work intersects past and present, transforming portraiture into iconographic metaphors. He manipulates his prints with oil paint or watercolor, creating rich, dark surfaces that suggest history, with intense white eyes engaging the viewer. His images are featured in major museum and private collections.