Ken West

My work is created in praise of common things. It is my belief that the common, no matter its origin, is frequently the seed of something spectacular. However, those common things don’t come with a label that speaks to the certainty or magnitude of their greatness. They are their own secret.

At my core I am a documentarian in still and moving image. I capture people and things as they are, not how we wish they were or how they will ultimately be. I live on both ends of the camera in a recursive loop of mindful appreciation, curiosity, and reverence of my subjects.

My work is grounded in a passion for mindfulness and the power of the documentary image. I am both fascinated and inspired by the human mind particularly the research into the science of perception and decision making of psychologist Daniel Kahneman. The images I capture are of passing, everyday moments that, at their best, add to our seemingly endless mental reservoirs of fear, irony, beauty, confusion, hope, etcetera that give life its individualized texture and meaning.

Ken has studied at the University of Paris, 7 and holds graduate degrees from The Ohio State University and New York University.

Solo Exhibitions

2018 - The Beauty of Everyday Thangs, Solo Exhibition. Gallery 72, Atlanta, Georgia. October, 2018 to November, 2018.
2018 - The Beauty of Everyday Thangs, Solo Exhibition. Mayor’s Gallery at City Hall, Atlanta, Georgia. October, 2018 to February, 2019.

Selected Group Exhibitions

2019 - Elevate 2019: Ways of Seeing, Juried Exhibition. 1029 McDaniel Street, Atlanta, Georgia. October, 2019.
2019 - Coined in the South, Juried Exhibition. Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina. October, 2019 - February, 2020.
2017 - Atlanta International Airport, Group Exhibition. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Atlanta, Georgia. September 22, 2017 - November 15, 2017
2017 - Where Are We?, Juried Exhibition. Atlanta Photography Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia. May 11, 2017 to June 17, 2017