BIRDS OF MEXICO CITY
Birds of Mexico City is a collection of portraits created by Pieter Henket over several years in Mexico City. The series focuses on a new generation of young Mexicans who are redefining contemporary expressions of gender, identity, tradition, and spirituality.
After spending significant time in the city, Henket and stylist Chino Castilla established a physical space where artists could collaborate and express themselves freely. This space became a vibrant intersection of disciplines—dancers, mask-makers, designers, and performers—each exploring the boundaries between Mexico’s deeply rooted Catholic traditions and the freedom of modern self-expression. Within this setting, Henket and Castilla worked closely with each participant to create visual narratives that reflected the tension and harmony between their cultural heritage and their lived identities.
About the Artist Pieter Henket is a Dutch fine art photographer based in New York City. His work explores identity, presence, and the symbolic power of portraiture, drawing influence from the 17th-century Dutch painterly tradition where light carries narrative meaning.
Henket first gained international recognition for his portrait of Lady Gaga for the cover of her debut album, The Fame (2008). His broader practice focuses on long-term conceptual projects, most notably Congo Tales (2018), a series created in collaboration with local communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Congo Tales was featured on the front page of The New York Times Arts section and served as the main artistic installation for the DRC at Expo 2020 Dubai.
He is the author of The Way I See It (2013) and Stars to the Sun (2014). His work is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum and has been exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum de Fundatie, and Museum Barberini. Henket is represented by Howard Greenberg Gallery, Bildhalle, and The Hulett Collection.