These human-scale black-and-white portraits by New Jersey multimedia artist Daniel Cosentino capture individuals encountered during his time living and working in the Balkans. Taken at ground level with a large-format 4×5 camera, the photographs emphasize presence and place, revealing personalities in their home environments across the Balkans and eslewhere. As a conceptual artist and educator, Cosentino blends formal photographic practice with reflective inquiry, paralleling sculptural works like Totem Domum and installations such as Standing Box. Now based in Morristown, New Jersey, he continues this exploration through writing in Latent Views and Equine Magistrate, where themes of visual art, memory, and philosophical presence intersect.
This is just a small selection of my 4×5 portrait work. I keep returning to the large-format camera because of how it slows everything down—it demands care, patience, and presence. That process is part of what I’m after. Working with the big camera makes me more attentive, both to the person in front of me and to the world around us. These portraits came out of time I spent living in the Balkans, and each one holds a moment of stillness, of quiet observation. I’m drawn to that space where photography stops being about image alone and becomes a way of being with someone, even just for a minute. That kind of encounter stays with me.
