Place and Identity-Surfing Around Deland

Project Title: Cultural Currents: A Surfboard's Journey Through DeLand

DeLand is more than just where I go to college. It is a place of deep personal learning. While I attend university here and pursue formal education, many of my most meaningful lessons come from outside the classroom. I consider these "educative experiences" encounters that expand my understanding of community, identity, and culture in quiet, everyday ways.

Through this project, I explore DeLand as a vibrant, layered space, photographing moments and locations that have shaped my connection to the town. From the rhythms of Hispanic music echoing through the Taco Tuesdays plaza to the local market's vibrant colors and voices, DeLand offers cultural insight and inspiration in unexpected places. These experiences have taught me to see and appreciate life's richness.

Rather than including myself directly in these photographs, I will use my surfboard as a symbolic presence, an extension of myself that quietly moves through these spaces. Sometimes, my shadow may enter the frame, but my physical body will remain absent. This choice allows the focus to remain on the environment while hinting at a personal narrative and point of view.

The work will be created using my camera, possibly supported by a tripod. As I continue developing the series, I may introduce other recognizable visual elements, but for now, the project remains rooted in exploring DeLand and my evolving sense of place within it.