Photographs by Juan Brenner
The Guatemalan Highlands are changing. In his latest book, Genesis, photographer Juan Brenner captures the transformation in stunning detail.
Published by Guest Editions, Genesis is the result of five years of work, documenting the region’s youth—the first generation to be chronically online and connected with the rest of the world, while still rooted in the region’s rich cultural history. In Genesis, young teenagers are pictured bathing with their friends, while others show off their teeth grills to the camera. Set against a backdrop of immense natural beauty, the Highlands—and the region’s youth—emerge as a place caught between past and future, shaped by the legacy of Spanish colonial rule and a rapidly modernizing world.
Brenner, a self-taught photographer who returned to Guatemala after a decade in New York, has compiled 360 pages of vibrant images and thoughtful essays, creating an archive of a moment in time. Reflecting on the project, he says Genesis evolved from a personal exploration to a broader study of place, where generational shifts and rapid changes in the landscape are part of the ongoing “process of becoming.”
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The Changing Faces of the Guatemalan Highlands
The Changing Faces of the Guatemalan Highlands
