We had the good fortune of connecting with E.F. Kitchen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi E.F., what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I had a crazy childhood. My mother was an artist and decided to move to Europe. We lived in Switzerland for a while and then ended up in Paris, France, where I went to high school. So I was always surrounded by art and the process of making art. It was a natural pursuit for me to follow.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
After high school, I went to Bennett College in Millbrook, NY, where I danced on the lawn of the famous Dr. Timothy Leary and decided I wanted to be a photographer. I bought my first used Nikon F and began seriously learning about photography. The development of my work evolved from my film-school training. Through that experience I began telling a story in a sequence of visuals. As a young girl, I had studied dance with Tania Grandsveva in Paris and with Rosella Hightower in Cannes. That background in classical and modern dance influenced the way I stage a set, light or choose a scene, and pose a figure. Practice and dedicated work helped me overcome challenges. One has to keep on practicing all the time. Since the mid-eighties, I have been a Venice-based artist, specializing in platinum printing. The platinum process is an antiquated printing method developed in the late nineteenth century. The most archival of all photographic works on paper. Today, with the deluge of iPhone and digital imagery flooding the market, I feel more strongly about the process I am using for my imagery. As an artist, I must continue to create and to forge forward with my vision, and that I can control.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
All the museums and galleries are wonderful places to visit. We would eat near our outings and hang out at my studio. I have many artists friends that we would visit.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mother, Elizabeth Franzheim, inspired me by watching her create her work. My mentor and friend – the photographer Tom Millea ( 9/30/44- 2/16/15) – taught me the platinum process. In Los Angeles in the middle 80’s, my friend and wonderful photographer, Jo A. Feiler, inspired me to get serious about photography as an art form. I met the photographer Tony Hernandez, who recently had had a retrospective at SFMOMA. Tony introduced me to large-format photography.

Website: www.efkitchen.com
Instagram: efkitchen
Linkedin: EF Kitchen
Facebook: E.f. Kitchen

Image Credits
E. F. Kitchen

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