Kris Graves (born 1982) is an American photographer who primarily works in portraiture and landscape photography. He is based in New York and London, and his work has been published and exhibited internationally. Graves's photographs evoke the sense of time, change, and memories as well as address social issues to raise awareness. Graves founded and directs ''Kris Graves Projects'', a publisher of art books.
Early life
Graves was born in 1982 in New York. He attended
Purchase College, State University of New York
The State University of New York at Purchase (commonly Purchase College or SUNY Purchase) is a Public college, public Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Purchase, New York. It is one of 13 comprehensive colleges ...
, where he earned BFA in Visual Arts.
Career
While working as a collections photographer at the
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, often referred to as The Guggenheim, is an art museum at 1071 Fifth Avenue on the corner of East 89th Street on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It is the permanent home of a continuously exp ...
in New York, Graves continued his photographic endeavors. He also started an art and photography publishing house, ''Kris Graves Projects'', which has become a platform for collaboration between the publisher and its artists. "On Death", published in 2019, was selected a
"TIME'S Best Photobooks of 2019"
* A photographic project, ''Discovered Missing'' (2010–2013), is a culmination of Graves's photographs made in
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
. He travelled to Iceland over the course of three years and photographed the country's landscapes, people, and their way of life.
* ''Testament Project'' (2014–2020) is a series of portraits depicting black Americans veiled in colored lightings. Subjects are given the freedom to choose the color of lighting by which their individuality is visualized and expressed. ''Testament Project'' challenges the stereotypes of black people that are deeply rooted in society and present opportunities for individuals to re-examine their preconceptions.
* Graves's series, ''A Bleak Reality'' (2016), consists of eight photographs that were taken during his eight days of travel across the United States. They depict the very places, including Ferguson and Staten Island, where eight black Americans were killed by police officers. Time when the photographs were taken corresponds, exactly or roughly, to the time of killings.
* In 2017, Graves was commissioned by
Equal Justice Initiative
The Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) is a non-profit organization, based in Montgomery, Alabama, that provides legal representation to prisoners who may have been wrongly convicted of crimes, poor prisoners without effective representation, and othe ...
(or EJI) and was included in its group exhibition
"The Legacy of Lynching: Confronting Racial Terror in America" The exhibition opened in July 2017 at the
Brooklyn Museum
The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 1.5 million objects. Located near the Prospect Heights, Crown H ...
in New York. The commission was part of EJI's "extensive research into the history of lynchings".
Solo exhibitions
* 2020: ''The Testament Project'', Austin Central Library, Texas, USA
* 2019: ''Testaments'', Peddie School, New Jersey, USA
* 2017: ''The Testament Project'', Joseph Gross Gallery, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
* 2017: ''The Testament Project'', Art on Paper X Sasha Wolf Projects, New York, New York, USA
* 2016: ''The Testament Project'',
Bryn Mawr College
Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh: ) is a women's liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Founded as a Quaker institution in 1885, Bryn Mawr is one of the Seven Sister colleges, a group of elite, historically women's colleges in the United St ...
, Pennsylvania, USA
* 2016: ''The Testament Project'',
The Center for Fine Art Photography, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
* 2016: ''The Testament Project'', NorteMaar, Brooklyn, New York, USA
* 2016: ''The Testament Project'',
Blue Sky Gallery
Blue Sky Gallery, also known as The Oregon Center for the Photographic Arts, is a non-profit exhibition space for contemporary photography in Portland, Oregon. Blue Sky Gallery is dedicated to public education, began by showing local artists and ...
, Portland, Oregon, USA
* 2013: ''Discovered Missing'', Pocket Utopia, New York, USA
* 2012: ''Permanence'', Pocket Utopia, New York, USA
2-Person exhibitions
*2011: ''Second Nature'' w/
Kared Rudd, Baang & Burne Contemporary, New York, USA
* 2010: ''A Queens Affair'' w/
Eric Hairabedian, Farmani Gallery, New York, USA
Group exhibitions
* 2020: ''LOST Carmel'', Center for Photographic Art, California, USA
* 2018: ''All Power: Visual Legacies of the Black Panther Party'', Sarah Surgeon Gallery, Central Washington University, USA
* 2018: ''All Power: Visual Legacies of the Black Panther Party'', Pacific Center Northwest, Seattle, Washington, USA
* 2018: ''Disruption'', Center for Photography Woodstock, New York, USA
* 2018: ''Legacy of the Cool'', Bakalar and Paine Galleries, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
* 2017: ''Three Minutes'', En Foco / Hamilton Landmark Galleries, New York, USA
* 2017: ''The Legacy of Lynching: Confronting Racial Terror in America'',
Brooklyn Museum
The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 1.5 million objects. Located near the Prospect Heights, Crown H ...
, New York, USA
* 2017: ''Summer Open'', Aperture Gallery, New York, USA
* 2017: ''Unbound'', Candela Gallery, Richmond, Virginia, USA
* 2017: ''Art.Now.2017'', Hearst Galleries, New York, USA
* 2017: ''Future Isms'', Glassbox Gallery, Seattle, Washington, USA
* 2019:
Light Work
Light Work is a photography center in Syracuse, New York. The artist-run nonprofit supports photographers through a community-access digital lab facility, residencies, exhibitions, and publications.
History
The organization is housed at Syra ...
Artist Residency, Syracuse NY
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Graves, Kris
American portrait photographers
Landscape photographers
Living people
Photographers from New York City
1982 births
State University of New York at Purchase alumni