Sofia Valiente
Sofia Valiente (b. 1990) is a Miami-based photographer who focuses on visual storytelling. Valiente received her BFA in Art from Florida International University in 2012 and her MFA in Visual Arts from the University of California in 2024. She received the World Press Photo award for her first book, Miracle Village, in 2015. Valiente has also been a two-time recipient of the South Florida Cultural Consortium Artist Fellowship, as well as receiving the Burn Magazine’s Young Talent Award (2015).
Her first project, Miracle Village (2014), explores a neighborhood known for being home to over 100 sex offenders in the southeastern part of Florida. Foreverglades (2019), her second project, is notable for being a public art installation and photography exhibit placed inside a replica of a 1920’s freight boat. The project, which accumulated over the span of four years, focuses on bringing stories of the Glades, Western Palm Beach County, back to the original site and transporting residents to another time in history. Valiente’s most recent project, Kahayatle, is still under development. This project focuses on preserving the histories and sounds of the everglades in collaboration with the Miccosukee Tribe’s Archive Department.