Nathan Popa

Nathan Popa was born in Brooklyn, NY in 1991. Raised within a family with his mother from France, and his father from Romania, he was brought up with a classical European upbringing. Valuing the schools of thought, art, and history. His father, Albert Popa, has been the highest influence within his life. In Alberts young adult life, he spent a considerable time in conflict with most of his professors because of his classical art convictions. This only made Albert more determined to pursue his dream to revive classical art. As Nathan grew up, he witnessed his fathers struggles and success in pursuing this dream. This lit the flame in his heart to follow in his fathers footsteps, joining him in the struggle to revive the classical style within the art world. At the age of 12, after working for their father, Nathan and his brother David saved up enough money to purchase their first video camera. It was then when Nathan began writing stories based in the medieval time period and putting thoughts into film. The middle-ages always had a certain hold over him. The idea of life being so frail back then made life itself more valued, making every action within life, a critical one. This aesthetic makes for fantastic storytelling, and more meaningful moments between individuals, which in turn, show the intensity of the human soul. These films are, of course, on a DVD somewhere within a bookshelf in the Popa home. At the age of 18, Nathan stopped film making and decided to enlist within the U.S Army. At this point, film making was something he had still wanted to do, but wanted to start his life by testing himself physically, emotionally, and mentally. Nathan trained in Ft. Sill, OK as a Cannon Crewmember and was inducted into the famous 101st Airborne, located at Ft. Campbell, KY. It was this experience that opened his eyes to the reality of the fragility of life. The many stories he had read growing up suddenly had a very real tone within them. In 2017, Nathan decided to take a massive leap of faith and move across the world to Tallinn, Estonia. Tallinn is well known for the beauty of its Old Town, dating back to the 13th century, with many of its structures still in tact. It would be here, among some of the oldest structures in Europe, that Nathan would seriously begin his delve into photography and film making. Staying true to his love for the Medieval era, and his passion for reviving the classical style like his father, Nathan incorporates the raw reality of human emotion within his photography and videography, whether it be a thoughtful tone, a calming tone, or a painful one. "I want to give the viewer a glimpse of another world beyond this one, so that there is a substance for that hope that lives within all of us." -Albert Popa