JO ALLEN | THEY/HE
SHOT BY EMILY KESTEL
WELCOME!
MY NAME IS JO ALLEN (THEY/HE) AND I AM AN LGBTQIA+ & BIPOC-FOCUSED PHOTOGRAPHER LIVING IN DES MOINES, IA.
COMMUNITY IS EVERYTHING TO ME. IT IS A SPACE WHERE I KNOW I AM SAFE. I AM CELEBRATED. I AM FREE OF WORRY.
I TELL THE STORIES OF MY COMMUNITY-- OF OUR CULTURE, LOVE, AND JOY THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHY.
MY ART IS MY ACTIVISM AND FOR ME, YOU CAN NOT SPLIT THE TWO APART.
I AM BLACK & I AM PROUD.
I AM TRANS & I AM PROUD.
I AM QUEER & I AM PROUD.
And this, well this is some of my work over the years!
these are The people I am lucky enough to connect with.
The people I WISH I SAW ON TV GROWING UP.
AND THE PEOPLE THAT INSPIRE ME TO NEVER STOP learning.
Kijana, 2021
Family Portraits, 2023
Elyse, 2021
Zakariyah, 2021
Molly, 2023
Josh, 2021
Ashley, 2023
Geneviève Umendaterih Salamone, 2022
Kijana, 2021
Wesley, 2021
Liam, 2021
testimonies
"When the opportunity presented itself to have a queer, Black artist capture a queer, Black event, I was psyched to have Jo shoot. Their artistry thrives in dynamic lighting situations!" - Allen Juneau, 2022
"Their attention to detail is superb and their creativity shined throughout our photoshoot. I could not be any more thrilled with the quality and vibrancy of the results. I will definitely will be working with them again in the future!" - Geneviève Umendaterih Salamone, 2022
"A huge reason why I picked Jo to do my senior pictures was the fact that they are such a positive and inspiring person. Given that we are both Black, queer artists, I thought it would be important to find unity in my community through these identifications," - Paxton, 2021
“For many years of my life, I felt hidden. After Jo captured our love for each other, I felt seen. It means so much to work with an LGBTQ+ based business where we were assured to love, love and that love always wins. We can’t wait to work with Jo again in the future ❤️” -Trent & Ryan, 2020
"It was really cool to have a photographer who was also non-binary who understood how important it is for me to have graduation pictures that represented who I am now versus who I was in high school. Jo's photo shoot experience and the final product of their photos are unmatched and I feel so lucky I was able to work with them," - Elyse Dye, 2021
"Working with you as a queer, Black artist was a breath of fresh air. I had no doubt you would capture me as I wanted, and it made me want to try different things than I would have with a different photographer," -Kijana, 2021
"As queer people, we are constantly required to examine our identity in the context of a cis-het world, and working with someone who understands that examination, and who can showcase your beauty through their art, is incredibly gratifying. Jo is compassionate, kind, and intensely committed to using their art to help others feel accepted by themselves and the world." -Elijah Rockhold, 2021
“This picture replicates how I feel on the inside, and that feeling is POWERFUL. In past shoots I’ve had with photographers I haven’t been able to see my inner self be reflected through an image, but JoVisuals made it happen. Black women are powerful, beautiful, elegant, worthy, and so many more adjectives that can all be documented in photos taken by JoVisuals.” -Zakariyah Hill, 2021
“I wanted to work with Jo because they were committed to creating the most unique photos that told my story. JoVisuals best represents diverse people at ISU because their photos show personality, culture, and style. I felt confident that their photos would light up my face and help show the joy of graduating!” -Josh Hanyang, 2021
Wesley Harris, 2021
Check out my work Below on Instagram and Linkedin!