Camille Ross’s artistic vision is shaped by her early experiences of cultural segregation and systemic racism. Growing up amid stark divisions between African American, Native American, and Anglo communities, she developed a deep understanding of marginalized lives. Her photography serves as a visual narrative, capturing resilience, struggles, and humanity.
A graduate of Goddard College with an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, Ross has received recognition from institutions such as the New Mexico Council on Photography and the International Women’s Foundation of Marfa, Texas. Her solo exhibitions at Building 98 in Marfa and the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe highlight her ability to evoke deep emotional responses through her work.
Ross’s exploration of digital photography and AI has pushed artistic boundaries. She is currently digitizing her extensive archive for a book with Afterhours Books, blending traditional and modern techniques to expand the scope of storytelling.
Here is the interview with the artist.
- What is your creative process like?
Ross: My style has changed considerably with the new mediums in photography where I was an analogue photographer for most of my life until about 17 years ago when I transitioned to first my Sony point and shoot digital camera which was a fantastic camera that allowed me to shoot copiously and freely because the editing was so easy. Then I started working Photoshop and Aperture and other apps as if they were my darkroom. It also had a slideshow option that allowed me to see all my work in black and white played back and I realized how strong the images were. Now I am digitizing my entire negative library for my new book being published by the famous Afterhours Books known for their incredible books on photography. So soon the public will see how I was already innovating and manipulating film by using multiple slide projectors in my work so the viewer could not distinguish the renaissance paintings I’d recreate with the bodies I inserted making stunning recreations of work by Da Vinci, Caravaggio and Titian.
So my style has changed dramatically especially with the invention of AI where u could finally make the work I’d always wanted to make which was documenting my ancestors journey’s as an indigenous tribe migrating from the Siberian Strait to an Alaskan Coastal Tribe then finally to the Cherokee nation. All of this work is inspired by my ancestral dreams that I started having thirty years ago around the sane time I met my father which was a major disappointment with the exception of discovering my DNA as a Native American woman and artist.
- How has your style changed over time?
Ross: I already discussed how my pets experiences shape my work but I omitted the most important part. I contracted Lyme disease thirty years ago which deeply impacted my life in both very physically and emotionally horrendous ways but it also gave me the time to create all the copious amounts of work I have now that has made me a critically acclaimed international artist. I exhibit my work all around the world and recently had a successful solo exhibition in Rome and got to spend time with all the people in Italy who have made my work so well known! - Do any personal experiences shape your work?
Ross: Challenges to being a successful visual artist are endless! It’s hard to find gallery representation and a gallery you love working with . I’ve been fortunate enough to have a great gallery in Rome who has really helped me get recognition and who I love working with. The internet has dramatically increased my viewership, I now have 45,000 followers. LinkedIn is where most people who have helped my career find me. My website often gets 200 international visitors a week which is an honor and a thrill for any artist and are as diverse as viewers from NYC to Milan to the Amazon Rain Forest! You must have incredible tenacity in this business and you must do work you love and for yourself and in my case, for the marginalized communities I photograph.
- What challenges do you face as an artist?
Ross: I want people to feel a range of emotions when viewing my work anywhere from joy and curiosity to deep introspection when viewing my harder subjects like the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women’s Epidemic to my work on Roe v Wade to my New Media work on the criminalization of women in our culture in my project Lady Criminals. I want people to feel joy when they ready my stories about a remote village in India who worship elephants in my project The Gathering of the Elephants. I want people to feel the shock that I did witnessing my father putting his shirt over his face when he same for the first time, his beautiful and accomplished first offspring! I want people to feel the beauty of photography and what photography can achieve when an artists pushes the boundaries of her medium. I want people to see the beauty, warmth and resilience of marginalized people especially in other countries like in my project Colombia! I just want people to feel, even if at times it’s uncomfortable. My work is about storytelling it’s not about in your face confrontations. I want people to feel the beauty of the desert and the simple things in my project The Secret Life of the Desert Ecosystem.
Conducting this interview with Ross was an insightful experience, offering a rare glimpse into the mind of an artist whose work is both deeply personal and socially relevant. Her journey from analog to digital photography showcases not just an adaptation to modern tools but a reinvention of her artistic approach. Through our conversation, it became evident that her work is not just about capturing images—it is about telling stories that matter. Ross speaks candidly about the impact of her heritage, personal struggles, and the challenges of sustaining an artistic career in a competitive field. Her ability to merge storytelling with visual artistry makes her work both compelling and thought-provoking.
