Interview
Gerald Marie-Nelly
Mister Geez (Gerald Marie-Nelly) is a visual artist from Martinique, based in London, whose work bridges street and documentary photography with mixed media. His artistic journey began in 2014, using photography as a means of storytelling and exploration. Over the years, he has documented communities in Haiti, run a studio in East London, assisted in photography workshops for Crisis UK for Homelessness alleviation, and exhibited internationally. His practice is defined by two distinct approaches. His black-and-white photography captures spontaneous moments of urban life, later transformed through the platinum/palladium process to enhance their depth and timeless quality. In contrast, his cyanotype mixed media works merge photography with data visualization, layering photographic elements with coded graphics to reveal hidden narratives. Through his self-published books, exhibitions, and workshops, he continues to push the boundaries of visual storytelling. His work invites viewers to rediscover the world with curiosity and wonder, blending tradition and innovation through alternative printing processes.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I’m originally from Martinique and moved to London in 2006. I started taking photography seriously around 2014, after the traumatic loss of a close family member in 2011. At first, it was just about exploring the city and using the camera as a way to connect with people and places. It wasn’t about entering the art world - it was more about curiosity, healing, and storytelling. Street photography came naturally to me. I’ve always been curious - I enjoy exploring places and interacting with people. I was drawn to those little moments that happen in public - humour, tension, culture, rhythm - especially in places like Brixton, Hackney, or Peckham. Over time, I began printing my images using traditional techniques like platinum/palladium, which opened up a whole new way of working with the image. Later on, I developed a second side to my practice, blending my tech background with handmade cyanotypes that mix photography and data visualisation. Since 2024, I’ve started showing work at fairs, doing commissions, and pushing deeper into the art world - but at the core, it’s still about telling stories that feel personal and rooted.”
What inspires you?
“I’m inspired by everyday life - the rhythm of the street, the way people carry themselves, small gestures, fleeting glances, funny scenes. London is full of these layered moments that say a lot about culture, community, and identity. I’m also deeply inspired by memory - personal, collective, ancestral. That’s what led me to start exploring mixed media forms that blend data and imagery with alternative processes like cyanotypes. The research, and the slow, hands-on method, let me connect to older forms of knowledge and storytelling. Being from Martinique, with all the weight of colonial history, migration, and resistance, definitely feeds into how I see the world and what I choose to show. Music, books, conversations - those all spark things too. But mostly, it’s about observing, feeling, and letting ideas build over time.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“A lot of my work is about visibility and memory. In my street photography, I focus on moments that might otherwise go unnoticed - things that speak to presence, joy, struggle, and identity in public space. I’m drawn to the rhythm of life in big European cities or back home in the Caribbean, and how it shows up in everyday scenes. With my cyanotypes, I’m currently digging into ancestral memory and the histories we don’t always learn in school. There’s a lot of care and research behind that work - from African empires to colonial dynamics - but the final image is always about feeling and connection. I’m trying to build bridges between past and present, science and spirit, the personal and the political. If there’s an underlying message, maybe it’s that we all carry stories - some visible, some hidden - and I’m just trying to bring a few of them to light.”
How would you describe your work?
“I’d say my work sits somewhere between documentary and poetic. It’s all rooted in photography, but I approach it through two distinct paths. One side is street and documentary photography - capturing real, unscripted moments in public space. I often print these images using traditional processes like platinum/palladium, which brings care and permanence to everyday life. My ongoing series London Street Chronicles is built from this approach. The other side of my practice is more conceptual and mixed media. I create handmade cyanotypes after researching and delving into data to explore themes like ancestral memory, activism, health, and community. In my latest project Ancestors Never Die, I blend photography with data, AI, or symbolism to tell deeper stories that go beyond the surface. Across both, I’m drawn to what’s often overlooked - stories that sit between the personal and the collective, the emotional and the political. I try to give them a visual language that feels honest, tactile, and alive.”
Which artists influence you most?
“I’m influenced by photographers who really knew how to tell stories - not just with style, but with heart. W. Eugene Smith’s essays, especially his work in Haiti and the story of the midwife nurse, hit me hard. Sebastiao Salgado showed me that black-and-white photography can be just as powerful in tropical settings - and that documenting people with dignity matters. Gordon Parks is in a league of his own - more than just a photographer, he was a true polymath. I also love the quiet honesty in Vivian Maier’s work, and I see that same feeling in Arlette Rosa-Lameynardie’s photos from Martinique - where I’m from. They both used Rolleiflex cameras, shooting from the hip, capturing people with a real sense of care and curiosity. Baldwin Lee’s portraits of Black life in the American South are beautifully crafted, and I recently discovered the Haitian Gerald Bloncourt, whose work carries that same kind of depth. I also have to shout out Paps Touré - a contemporary street photographer from Paris who really inspired me when I was starting out. These artists remind me that good photography isn’t just about aesthetics - it’s about presence, purpose, and how you look at people. When it comes to mixed media, there’s only one real influence I can name - because blending photography with data visualisation isn’t something I see done often. I find a lot of inspiration in the Martinican artist Hector Charpentier and his concept of Figurabstraction. He paints detailed female figures surrounded by abstract layouts filled with Amerindian and African symbols. I find his work fascinating - both visually and culturally - and it’s definitely influenced how I think about layering, symbolism, and the unseen in my own work.”
“I’m inspired by everyday life - the rhythm of the street, the way people carry themselves, small gestures, fleeting glances, funny scenes.”
What is your creative process like?
“My creative process really depends on which side of my practice I’m working on. For street and documentary photography, it’s mostly about being present. I walk a lot, observe, and wait for something to happen - sometimes it’s about instinct, sometimes it’s about rhythm or light. I don’t plan those images - they come to me when I’m tuned in. Once I’ve captured something that speaks to me, I’ll work with traditional printing techniques like platinum/palladium, which takes time and care. It turns something quick and spontaneous into something slow and permanent. On the other side - with my mixed media and cyanotype work - the process starts with research. I usually spend time digging into themes, whether it’s history, data, mythology, or something more personal. Then I build the image in layers: photography, digital components like AI or data visualisation, and finally the physical print, which is all hand-made. I like that part - it brings me back to the body, to touch, to something real. In both cases, it’s about slowing down, feeling my way through the work, and letting the image reveal itself over time.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I think an artist’s role is to reflect, question, and connect. Sometimes, that means holding up a mirror to society, sometimes it’s about offering escape or healing, and other times it’s just about showing people something they hadn’t noticed before. For me, being an artist isn’t about having all the answers - it’s about staying curious, staying open, and creating work that speaks to something bigger than yourself. Whether that’s street photography that captures everyday resilience, or mixed media work about ancestry and history, it’s all part of the same intention: to make people feel, think, or remember. As for how it’s evolving, I think artists today have more tools and platforms than ever - but also more noise to cut through. So the role might stay the same at the core, but how we show up, who we reach, and how we share our stories is constantly shifting. I try to stay grounded in the work itself - if that’s honest, then everything else will follow.”
Have you had any noteworthy exhibitions you'd like to share?
“One of the key exhibitions for me has been The Other Art Fair in London, where I showcased London Street Chronicles in both 2024 and again in 2025. It was a big step forward - not just in terms of visibility, but also in connecting directly with audiences who really resonated with the work. Presenting the series in that context helped solidify the direction of my street photography practice. I’m also exhibiting at Cluster Photography & Print Fair (April 2025), where I’ll be showing both sides of my work - the street photography printed in platinum/palladium and the cyanotype series Ancestors Never Die. It’s one of the first opportunities I’ve had to present those two worlds together. Most of my other projects live online or through self-published books, but more shows are in the works.”
