FotoFest 2020

I’m excited to participate in FotoFest 2020, one of the largest portfolio reviews in the world for photographers. While this is my first time to this particular review with an international emphasis, it will be my seventh multi-day portfolio review since 2015. I look forward to connecting with photography curators: Anne W. Tucker and Malcolm Daniel (The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston), Gregory Harris (High Museum of Art), Jessica S. McDonald (Harry Ransom Center), and Natasha Egan (Museum of Contemporary Photography), Marta Weiss (Victoria & Albert Museum). I also look forward to connect with gallerists Laura Noble (L A Noble Gallery) and Douglas Marshall (Marshall Contemporary) and meeting lots of new collectors and photography friends.

I’ve created this little portfolio leave-behind specific to the event which will also serve as a memorable marketing piece for collectors of my work— they can tape it to the back of the framed print for a full overview of the work in a tidy document. Have a look:

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Creating memorable ‘leave-behinds’ are now becoming an Olympic sport! With my #fotofest leave-behinds, I’m going for an academic marketing approach to promote three completed photography projects: The Sheep and the Goats, The Unchosen Ones, and The Best of the Best. The brochure includes installation views, full artist statements, essay excerpts by curators Anjuli Lebowitz, Alison Nordström, and Lisa Volpe. There’s also a lovely testimonial by Corey Keller, too. . @maryvirginiaswanson I tried to remember important details from #mvsmasterclass2018 like important calls to action including ‘How to Purchase Artwork’ and ‘How to Schedule.' Thank you to @sonjariegerphotography for the inspiration, @burnetart for the support. Mom and Dad helped to proof, too! . Design: Kevin Omura, Kuleana Design. Printed by PS Print. . @coreykeller510 @lismvolpe @anjulilebowitz @alison.nordstrom #fotofest2020 #theunchosenones #rjkern #thebestofthebestmn #thesheepandthegoats

A post shared by R. J. Kern (@kernphoto) on Feb 19, 2020 at 10:07am PST

United Nations of Photography {Podcast Interview}

In episode 89, UNP founder and curator Grant Scott interviewed me in his podcast, A Photographic Life. In the podcast, he talked about the purpose of a photo book, the pressure put on photographers, and the rise of the ‘photo-entrepreneur’. In the podcast, he asked for an audio response to the question: ‘What Does Photography Mean to You?’ CLICK HERE TO LISTEN >>

Grant Scott also directed one of my favorite recent films about photography, a documentary film, Do Not Bend: The Photographic Life of Bill Jay which features folks I adore such as Magnum Photographer David Hurn and photo consultant Mary Virginia Swanson. Stream the documentary on YouTube here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wd47549knOU&t=3915s.

Grant Scott interviews R. J. Kern in the podcast, A Photographic Life, on January 8, 2020.

Acquisition: Fidelity Corporate Art Collection

An outcome from attending PhotoNOLA portfolio review (Dec 2016), I am proud have my work acquired by the Fidelity Corporate Art Collection (Boston, MA). Thank you Alexandra Sullivan for helping to make this possible! The photograph, Rylee and Nelly, Clay County Fair, Minnesota, 2016 from the series The Unchosen Ones was published in National Geographic (Nov 2017).

Awarded: 2020 Artist Initiative Grant

I was awarded my third Minnesota State Arts Board grant (2016, 2018, 2020). With the support of a 2020 Artist Initiative Grant, I look forward to creating new work for my project, The Unchosen Ones, documenting adolescent subjects four years later and plan to continue my visual storytelling with the introduction of audio and video documentation (VR tools, perhaps). I am curious to document how values and attitudes have been retained and maintained in the lives of these 70+  adolescents. In addition, a traveling exhibition of the subjects photographed four years prior will introduce the project to Minnesota county fair audiences.

Riley Poppel summed it up well at the Clay County Fair in 2016 when asked what life skills she had learned and how those skills shaped her life:

I’ve learned the importance of never giving up, always helping others learn, and the importance of teamwork when working with my animals. It has taught me about the goodness of hard work and how to care for others through love.

Marcus and Sheep, Mahnomen County Fair, Minnesota, 2016 from the series The Unchosen Ones.

The Unchosen Ones — A Community Exhibition of Photography, Mahnomen County Fair, 2018

Acquisition: Center for Photography at Woodstock

The Center for Photography at Woodstock (Woodstock, NY) has added Three Graces, Stearns County, Minnesota from the series Out to Pasture to their permanent collection this week. I thank Hannah Frasier for her support. I participated in the annual gala auction in October 2019 and enjoyed the experience.

PhotoNOLA Book Fair 2019

Join me Dec 11 at the PhotoNOLA Book Fair in New Orleans. I’ll have all three of my Collector’s Editions on hand for sale as well as trade editions of The Sheep and the Goats and The Unchosen Ones.

InsideHook Feature

Photographs from the series the Divine Animals: The Bovidae and The Best of the Best were featured by InsideHook “No One Shoots an Animal Quite Like Photographer R. J. Kern” by Elyssa Goodman on December 6, 2019. I enjoyed meeting Elyssa at the Center for Photography at Woodstock Auction in New York in October and appreciate her writing on photography and the arts.

She writes: “As much as Kern’s work is about analyzing part of a cultural landscape, it’s also an internal exploration. One of the ways he does that is by looking at what he calls beauty ‘in the common’ — or at least what is common to him, among the bucolic landscape he now calls home.”

Solo Exhibition at Plains Art Museum

A solo exhibition of The Unchosen Ones at the Plains Art Museum (Fargo, ND) opens Thursday, December 5, 2019. I will be giving a free artist talk at 6pm. On Saturday, December 7, I will offer a fun, portrait workshop for kids and families from 1-4pm. All events free. The exhibition runs through March 19, 2020.

The Best of the Best {salt print & folio}

Just in time for the holidays, I am offering a small salt print with folio made by yours truly. It’s like your ticket to Dr Dolittle's Salted Chocolate Factory.

Folio size: 5 x 10 inches. Free shipping for the first 10 orders (US only).

Minnesota State Fair Supreme Champion Pairings from 2018  |  printed November 2019  |  signed on verso  |   open edition

salted paper print with white beeswax and lavender oil in custom folio featuring gold foil stamping, all hand-made by the artist.

Click below to order >>

The Best of the Best -salt print and folio

$150.00

Purchase

Testimonials for "The Best of the Best"

The Best of the Best continues to receive accolades from curators, collectors, and writers alike. This week I share two written testimonials from supporters of the art book project, Deborah Ultan and George Slade.

CPA 2019 International Juried Exhibition -

A print from my series The Best of the Best was chosen among 90 of 2200 photographs submitted from around the world by juror, Paula Tognarelli, for the Center for Photographic Art 2019 International Juried Exhibition. I’m super happy to be among the 45 submissions selected for the online gallery.

On Saturday, November 2, 2019, 4:00-5:00 pm there will be a curator led walk-through by Ms. Tognarelli in the CPA Gallery, Sunset Center, Carmel, CA. An opening reception, catalog sales and the announcement of winning entries will immediately follow from 5:00 - 7:00 pm in the CPA Gallery.

I’m honored to have work exhibited at CPA and appreciate the support of both Paula Paula Tognarelli and Ann Jastrab.

CPA 2019 International Juried Exhibition entry by R. J. Kern, from The Best of the Best series.

Honorable Mention: A Smith Gallery

Juror Fran Forman selected Supreme Champion Swine Male/Female Pair, 2018 Minnesota State Fair for the “Red” exhibition at A Smith Gallery in Johnson City, Texas running October 26 - Nov 30. My work was awarded Director’s Honorable Mention by gallery directors Amanda Smith and Kevin Tully. I’m excited to have work chosen by Fran Forman and exhibited along with my friends Melissa Lynn and JP Terlizzi.

This work represents the first framed work exhibited without glazing to emphasize the white beeswax and lavender oil finish which offers a “historically relevant” fragrant experience when viewing in person. In this work, I pay homage to the salt printing as an important historical process. I use the exact finish commonly used during the 1840-1860s for salt printing to preserve the work and bring out the best tonality in the salt print as taught to me at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY.

BETA feature

The Best of the Best project was published in BETA Developments in Photography (Issue 33) released Oct 6, 2019. The online magazine is focused on the work of contemporary photographers across the globe and features the work of four photographers per quarterly issue. Special thanks to Jeff Moorfoot who I enjoyed meeting at the Photolucida 2019 portfolio review.

MPR News feature

As a long-time listener and support of NPR, I am excited to share Tim Nelson’s article: “Say cheese curds! State Fair champion animals celebrated with fine art photograph” published by MPR News on August 30, 2019. I enjoyed my time at the fair with Tim!

Here we are at the “selfie” wall at the MPR booth at the 2019 Minnesota State Fair:

Legacy Matters podcast interview

Thank you to Sam Devine, James Holmberg, and Sarah Anderson for hosting me on Episode 48 of the Legacy Matters podcast which went live this week. We spoke about tricks behind the Commemorative Artwork for the 2019 Minnesota State Fair, inspirations from the history of photography and animal husbandry, and why legacy matters (the title of the podcast, of course). The four of us had a wonderful conversation, filled with lots of good laughs as well as insight into my fine art practice.

Listen to this Legacy Matters podcast interview, Episode 48: R. J. Kern, for a few good laughs and insight into my working process as a fine-art photographer in MInneapolis.

Critical Mass 2019 Top 200

I’m honored to be among Photolucida’s Critical Mass 2019 Top 200. The group of fine-art photographers juried in this group celebrates the pursuit of creative photographic excellence while engaging new audiences.

Supreme Champion Chicken Male / Female Pairing, 2018 Minnesota State Fair from the series The Best of the Best. Salt print over archival pigment print, 20 x 24 inch sheet size, Ed of 5 + 2 AP.

PDN Photo of the Day feature

The Best of the Best was featured on PDN’s Photo of the Day: "Kern points out that when the contributions of chance are thrown in, animal breeding and photography are endeavors that remind us we are not always in control. For example, two champions do not guarantee champion offspring. And in the game of photography, you don’t always know what is going to happen inside your frame.”

PDN Photo of the Day featuring work by R. J. Kern, Supreme Champion Turkey Male / Female Pair, 2018 Minnesota State Fair from the series The Best of the Best.

Star Tribune feature

On August 18, 2019, the Star Tribune published the feature article, “R. J. Kern photographs 'best' animals for Minnesota State Fair,” by Alicia Eler. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL ARTICLE >>

“When he photographs them, they become significant portraits, almost like archetypes,” said Deborah Ultan, curator at the Gorman Rare Art Book Collection at the University of Minnesota. “R.J. bridges the history of photography with the present, and I think he beautifully does that in a way that is so seamless that you feel like you’re looking at something old and new at the same time. ”

R.J. Kern ‘s “The Best of the Best” features portraits of livestock from the 2018 State Fair made using a 19th-century bronze-tinted salt photo technique in the Star Tribune feature, August 18, 2019.

Acquisition by the Minnesota Historical Society

The COLLECTOR’S EDITIONs of The Sheet and the Goats (Ed 44/50) and The Unchosen Ones (Ed 7/20) was acquired this week by the Minnesota Historical Society in St Paul, MN. Special thanks to Patrick K. Coleman (pictured) and Jennifer Huebscher for their support. This is the first institution in Minnesota to collect either award-winning book projects. The projects were supported in part by the Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant (2016, 2018). Images from the projects were featured in National Geographic magazine (November 2017). A solo exhibition of the fine-art portrait series, The Unchosen Ones, opens December 6, 2019 at the Plains Art Museum in Fargo, ND.

Minnesota Historical Society Acquisitions Librarian Patrick K. Coleman (left) and visual artist R. J. Kern (right) display recent acquisitions to the permanent collection. Photo by Lori L. Williamson.

Acquisition by The Gorman Rare Art Book Collection

The Francis V. Gorman Rare Art Book Collection at the University of Minnesota Library recently acquired the COLLECTOR’S EDITION of The Best of the Best (Edition 1 of 12) for their permanent collection.

This Minnesota book arts collection consists of art exhibition catalogs, rare artists books, illustrated periodicals (19th century), published sketchbooks from artists and architects, rare monographs, style guides, and zines from the 1500s to the present with focus on 19th-century and the post-1950 avant garde.

I greatly appreciate the enthusiasm and support of curator Deborah Ultan, enthusiastic in the intersection of book arts and photography. In my research for this project, she shared completed works published by the 21st Editions. I found it incredible to hold prints signed by Sally Mann and Cy DeCosse, study clamshell box design of Sheila Metzner’s work, and read colophon details of John Metoyer’s Blood Migration. I am growing to really appreciate the book arts in Minnesota and am proud to be apart of her collection.