A consideration of cultural constructions of masculinity in contemporary Peru by photographer Raul Guillermo. Guillermo is a Peruvian documentary and fine art photographer based in Paris, France. “An Inherent Tear” is a series of portraits, landscapes, still life, and conversations around the ideal of “hombría”, how it continues to shape everyday life, and the tensions, contradictions, and vulnerabilities that exist beyond dominant representations of manhood. The project began in 2022, after Guillermo saw a television commercial that presented a highly stereotypical image of masculinity.

“The distance between that representation and the men I encountered in my own life led me to question how masculine identities are formed and maintained, and how they evolve across generations. I thought of my grandfather telling me, ‘Men should not cry.’ Although seemingly simple, the phrase encapsulates a deeply rooted expectation that emotional restraint defines male strength. It also became the starting point for reflecting on the inherited beliefs that continue to influence my own understanding of masculinity.”

In “An Inherent Tear” Guillermo asks whether photography can become a space where inherited notions of masculinity can be questioned without replacing one certainty with another. By moving between documentary observation and constructed imagery, the project explores how gender is shaped by family histories, geography, class, and memory, while opening space for vulnerability, contradiction, and dialogue. Ultimately, Guillermo is interested in how photographic images can hold these complexities without reducing them, allowing masculinity to be understood not as a fixed identity but as an ongoing process of negotiation.