IWASONCE — Andres Cortes Design

"I Was Once in New York" is a zine that pairs photographs i took of NYC with fragments of personal thought and music.

It’s meant to be a reflection of my time in New York, a space I deeply admire, capturing both appreciation and the bittersweet possibility of impermanence.

CONCEPT

This project is born from the tension between belonging and transience. The photos are like little memory capsules, layered with repetition and distortion to evoke nostalgia like looking back on a place that might never fully be yours again.

The title, "I Was Once in New York," is both a statement and a worry: that this city, with all its overwhelming uniqueness, might someday exist only in my recollections. Adding in the songs I listened to and the thoughts I had while shooting turns it into a kind of diary, about connection, longing, and learning to accept that not everything is forever.