Introducing: Em Kane

Since a child, Em Kane has observed the world in a poetic manner, by finding beauty in life’s smallest details. Their work is a love letter to their communtiy. “I fell in love with photography before I owned a camera, by studying my Parent’s photo albums. I was fascinated by the idea of freezing a moment in time on a photograph, and years later my own eyes & imagination giving that moment life again.”

“As a Black Queer person raised in the Southern United States, I have learned the importance of documenting my culture: for generations, our stories and histories have been taken, rewritten and callously hidden from our sight and consciousness. I want my work to help correct that history of erasure for marginalized people.”

“Using city streets, public transportation, open events, and today’s Youth as my visual language, my work explores the poetic and lyrical nuances of everyday life. My lens is often focused on themes of race, class, cultural identity & community, notably Black and Brown lives. Photographic matter and process determine the meaning of a photograph; which is why my work is shot primarily on black & white film then developed & printed by hand. As an artist I strive to create images that evoke an emotional response in my viewers, as if they were looking through their own family’s photographs.”