Black and white photo of a woman with platinum blonde hair and tattoos sitting in the driver's seat of a lowrider, looking directly at the camera.

Nathaniel Tetsuro Paolinelli

Nathaniel Tetsuro Paolinelli is an Albuquerque documentary photographer whose work is rooted in New Mexico, lowrider culture, and everyday life across the American Southwest.

Through documentary projects, portraiture, and street photography, he photographs the people, places, and traditions that shape community life in Albuquerque and beyond.

Seventh and Central: Lowriders

a photographic tribute to Albuquerque’s vibrant lowrider culture

“Paolinelli’s photographs are current, raw, and deeply human, and they honor a subculture that’s unique to our particular place and time. His reverence for his subjects conveys a remarkable trust and openness.”

– Suzanne Sbarge, Founder and Former
Executive Director of 516 Arts

People gather around a classic lowrider at dusk in downtown Albuquerque while a woman sits with a dog in the foreground.
Available Now

Selected Works

Selected documentary photography by Nathaniel Tetsuro Paolinelli, rooted in Albuquerque, New Mexico, lowrider culture, community life, and everyday experience across the American Southwest and beyond.

Explore Projects
Black-and-white portrait of a tattooed man standing with folded arms on a street in Albuquerque.
Black-and-white street scene of people with umbrellas in the rain at night in Bangkok.
Black-and-white photograph of people gathered around a lowrider in Albuquerque with a woman and dog in the foreground.
Black-and-white photograph of a dancer in regalia crossing Central Avenue during a post-COVID gathering in downtown Albuquerque.

New Mexico Lowrider Culture

Lowrider culture is a living expression of creativity, identity, and community. Through paint, chrome, hydraulics, and cruising, it turns the street into a place of pride and connection.

Explore Project
A lowrider up on 3 wheels at the Kimo Theater on Central in downtown Albuquerque at night.
Family and community gathered along Central Avenue during an evening cruise.
A portrait beside a classic car, grounded in the style and presence of the lowrider scene.
A lowrider hoping skyward beneath an overpass as a crowd looked on in Albuquerque, New Mexico.