Award-winning photographer’s work featured at First Coast Cultural Center exhibit

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The work of photographer Paula Veloso is currently on display as part of “The Eyes are the Window to the Soul” exhibit by the First Coast Cultural Center.

The exhibit will continue to be displayed at the location at 3972 3rd St. S. in Jacksonville Beach each day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. until Dec. 22.

Veloso’s work has earned recognition and awards in recent years, since she held her first solo exhibition in 2018 in her hometown of Porto, Portugal.

According to Veloso, she has been fascinated with photography ever since she was a child and she enjoys capturing the world around her, which has become the primary focus of her artwork.

She found out about the First Coast Cultural Center through Instagram, and she developed a relationship with the center’s executive director Donna Guzzo from that.

From there the relationship grew into a friendship and it all led to “The Eyes are the Windows to the Soul” exhibit making its world premiere at the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall during the Holiday Shoppes event Dec. 2 and 3.

“Donna came to Portugal, and it was a really pleasant meeting,” Veloso said. “Everyone has been so friendly in this town, and it has been a great experience.”

For Veloso, she does not come up with the ideas for the things for the subjects of her photographs, but instead she just tries to capture the world around her.

“I take photos of many different subjects, so there is much variety,” Veloso said. “I photograph every day with my iPhone.”

Over the years, she has found that it is the subtle moments and little things in life that are often overlooked that make for the best forms of artwork.

“When you stop and take the time to look, it’s the little things that are much bigger than we think,” Veloso said.

According to Veloso, once she spots a moment to capture, it is the lighting and angles of the photo that truly brings that moment to life for the person viewing that photo.

“It’s the lights and shadows that really allow for the feelings of a photo to come to life,” Veloso said. “Those emotions are always so beautiful to me.”

As with most people, Veloso got a lot of experience throughout the years taking photos of her two children as they grew up.

It was not until the past couple of years when she started putting her photos on display after she had been told by many that she needed to share her photos with the rest of the world.

“I always liked to look back at my photos, but I never expected that they would be so good to win awards,” Veloso said. “I’ve received so very many compliments of my photos, and I’m very happy with that.”

The awards she has won were judged upon by those around the world, which has shown that her photos have an impact on the viewer no matter their culture or where they are from.

“It can be very difficult for me to choose my photos, because I have about 16,000 on my iPhone right now,” Veloso said. “It’s good to know that others like my photos as much as I do.”