Meet Nora Benjamin | NXRA VISUALS Photographer & Visual Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nora Benjamin and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nora, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
Although my whole family is from Rhode Island, I grew up in Alabama. (A unique combination to say in the least.) We first moved there when I had just turned five and I stayed there until I moved to Atlanta for college when I was 18. Being someone who was growing up in a place they weren’t from, but which quickly became home; I know what it feels like to feel like an ‘outsider’ and wanting so badly to feel like you belong somewhere.

This ‘transplant childhood’ (as I’ve dubbed it) has shaped the person, and subsequently the artist, I am today. Growing up, I would often times be faced with criticism or confusion surrounding my interests or the things I liked to wear (I was very into tie-dye in high school haha) and living in small-town America, small-town Bible-Belt America, sometimes those critiques would separate me from my peers and I would often spend. A lot of time on my own. This independency was learned out of necessity, but I am so thankful that I learned to be comfortable on my own; ‘doing my own thing.’ It made me appreciate who I am and further pushed me to dive into my interests, which at the time was art. Art was my form of escape, and although my high school at my time of attendance didn’t have many art classes, I would take any class I could find, because that’s where it felt like I found like-minded people.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
NXRA VISUALS was the name I coined for my social media/website, because I felt like it was a great way to categorize what I do (while also alluding to the discomfort I had surrounding my name as a kid, no Nora is not an old lady name; thank you!) because I don’t want to be categorized. Labels are stifling and while I do consider myself a photographer first and foremost, I do not want to limit myself and my work just to adhere to a title. When I first came to Atlanta, and first started my studies at school I found this to be a problem that weighed on me heavily. I had so many different interests that I wanted to develop such as collage work, illustration, graphic design, alternative processes and so on, but was met with the classic art school road block: only specialize in one thing.

But why? That was the question I was constantly stumped with my first year, which is why I switched my major five times within my first year. (Or was it six?) I didn’t want to feel restricted. Art was my source of freedom growing up, so I had expected to feel that same freedom in college, but instead felt even more silenced. It really wasn’t until my junior year of college that I allowed myself to step outside the box I had forced myself into. I was so worried about what people in my department would think if I started bringing these interests in, but as I slowly began to explore with the encouragement from my mentors, I realized that my interests and how I wanted to combine them is what makes my art unique to me.

The pandemic hit just as these realizations occurred, in fact we received news of the shut down while in a critique for my first (and circumstantially final) installation piece where I combined collage work, graphic design, fabric printing, and installation design. Being away from school, away from constant critiques and peering eyes, I allowed myself to simply create. I knew the pandemic was going to mark a significant time in my life as a young adult, although unaware of how long, and I wanted to use that time to allow myself to create unapologetically and without second-guessing myself. From that moment, March 11, 2020, to now (nearly a year later as I write this) I have produced some of my best work solely because I am allowing myself to be and to create without fear of other’s judgements or people ‘not getting it.’ I’m the only one that has to ‘get it’ because it’s my self-expression at the end of the day and my outlet, and if people understand it that’s a perk not a given.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well, luckily enough my best friend lived in Atlanta for four years, so I would say we would probably go to the High Museum to see what their latest exhibition is the head to Cafe Intermezzo off of Peachtree Street to grab drinks and some appetizers, maybe even mussels. Then from there we would walk to Piedmont Park and hang out, maybe even grab a King of Pops if it’s hot out (my favorite is the raspberry lime) and jump on the Beltline and head to Ponce City Market. We would definitely pay a visit to Modern Mystic and Citizen Supply and spend a little bit too much money. After that we would get back on the Beltline and walk down to New Realm. New Realm is a great brewery that looks out over the Beltline and usually has live music, so that would be a fun spot to unwind at in the evening. If we were feeling a little munchy after that, we would have to Uber to Wingnuts over by Georgia Tech, because they have really good wings- my favorite being the Hot Lemon Pepper ones (flats are the best!) Maybe we would even go to an event at Ravine or District!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to dedicate my shoutout to two of my biggest mentors during my time as a Photography student at SCAD Atlanta. When I came into SCAD as a freshman, I had only ever seen a MacBook Laptop in real life maybe once or twice, so I barely knew how to work any of the Adobe Creative Suite and I certainly felt behind when it came to camera and equipment talk. I was scared and nervous, and also had no idea what I was doing in the Photography department other than the fact that I just loved making pictures. Forest McMullin and Suellen Parker-Shockley were two professors I had within my first year at SCAD, but also over the course of the last four years.

Forest taught me everything I know about working in a studio, advertising photography, and overall professionalism. He listens and wants to hear your concepts and ideas and the ‘why’ behind it all, which in turn has strengthened my conceptual thinking. Forest, unknowingly, has also made me come out of my shell. Seeing the way he speaks about his work or the things he believes in has encouraged me to speak passionately and stick up for what I believe in. He’s put me in contact with people I would’ve never imagined getting to speak to and he has always been a driving force behind my work being the best it can be- he’s trained my eyes to see the smallest imperfections, but also to appreciate the ‘wins’ and I know I am a significantly better photographer, artist, and creative professional because of all of his advice and mentorship over the past four years.

Suellen I’ve always thought of as an ‘on-campus mom.’ (I also know I am not the only person in my department who thinks this haha). She is so caring and so encouraging. Our curriculum is very intense, but Suellen always makes sure to check in and see how we are doing, not as students, but as people. I remember my freshman year Suellen and I had a one on one meeting, a time where I was not feeling confident in my work, and she encouraged me to continue what I was doing because she saw potential and really enjoyed my work. It meant so much to me to hear someone talk about what they saw in my work and how they interpreted my aesthetic. I was so excited I even wrote in my notes after our meeting what she had said, so I could look back in times of doubt. Over the years, her continued interest in my work and her encouragement when I pitch an idea that is really ‘out there’ is what has encouraged me to develop my own style and break away from the ordinary or overdone, no matter how scary that can be.

I am beyond thankful for them both; if you would like to see their work please check out their websites:

Forest: www.forest-mcmullin.com

Suellen: www.suellenparker.com

Website: www.nxravisuals.art

Instagram: instagram.com/nxravisuals

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nora-benjamin-b12617167/

Other: to purchase prints: nxravisuals.darkroom.tech

Image Credits
NXRA VISUALS @nxravisuals on ig