Gabriel Moises Rivera is a photo maker born in Pennsylvania to Puerto Rican parents, raised in Dallas, Texas. New York has been home for the last decade, though in recent years his life has extended to a small village in Italy.

For fifteen years the camera has been his primary tool. Over the last nine, he has worked exclusively with black and white film, handling every step from development to final print by hand. At Gowanus Darkroom in Brooklyn, where he has taught analog photography since 2023, he passes on not just a craft but a way of seeing.

Rivera's photographs are marked by solitude and spatial awareness. Moments are carved out of their surroundings and allowed to take on a new existence within the frame. A minimalist sculpting of sorts, one that comes down to removing what is nonessential so what remains is free to speak clearly. His eye favors the peripheral and the in-between, people as form, light as structure, textures and details of everyday life that exist just outside the center of attention, made significant by the act of witnessing.

A seven-year collaboration with photographer Jack McKain has carried Rivera through commercial and independent projects, the two working in parallel but distinct practices. In January 2026, Rivera's print titled 'Sanctuary of Presence' was exhibited at MoMA as part of 'Call and Response,' an exhibition by artist Samora Pinderhughes.

Where: The ArtsCenter, 400 Roberson Street, Carrboro NC 27510
When: Oct. 24, 2026, 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Cost: FREE!