Help Me Stay in the U.S. on an Artist Visa (O-1)

Hi, I’m Kunwar Prithvi Singh Rathore — a queer South Asian artist and photographer based in Brooklyn, NY. After recently completing my MFA in Photography at Pratt Institute, I’m working toward applying for an O-1 visa, which will allow me to continue building my practice and career in the U.S.

The O-1 visa process is complex, expensive, and requires the help of immigration lawyers: all together, between all the fees, documentation, and logistics it can add up to $8,000–$10,000. As someone just out of school and navigating freelance work, it’s been incredibly difficult for me to cover these costs alone — and that’s why I’m reaching out for help.

To make this more manageable, VLA (Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts) has kindly connected me with a pro bono attorney, and I’m doing everything I can to keep the expenses as low as possible.

Why This Means So Much

Being in New York City has not only allowed me to grow and develop as an artist, but find community, meaning, and, most importantly, the freedom to live my life how I want.

I’ve spent the last few years creating work rooted in intimacy, family archives, queerness, masculinity, and South Asian cultural memory. My photographs, installations, and publications have been exhibited at institutions like Clamp Gallery, Fugue Gallery, Pratt Manhattan Gallery, and across independent spaces in the U.S., Europe and India.

My work here has been deeply collaborative and community-driven, and being able to stay means continuing those conversations through exhibitions, publications, and visual storytelling.

Every dollar you give will go toward:

Any Support Helps

Whether it’s $5, $50, or just a share or encouragement — it truly means the world to me. I’ve been incredibly blessed to find so many kind and supportive people in a country I’ve only been in for four years. My friends, mentors, and artistic community have been essential in helping me continue doing the work I love in the city that makes it possible.

Thank you for believing in the power of art and in the potential of people like me to make space for queer, diasporic narratives in the world.

With profound love, thanks, and hope,

Prithvi

Website/portfolio

No raffles, sweepstakes, giveaways, or returns on investment are offered in exchange for any donations made to this GoFundMe.