Erik Kessels / Co Founder KesselsKramer / Creative Director, Artist, Photographer, Graphic Designer
Erik Kessels' list of achievements are extensive. He is best described as a curator and publisher who conceptualises vernacular photography and produces unusual artworks. He is a founding partner and Creative Director of the highly successful and innovative advertising agency,KesselsKramer in Amsterdam (yes, that is the actual website). He has won numerous awards and KesselsKramer comprises of thirty eight people from eight different countries and has been operating since 1996. He has designed, edited and published several books on vernacular photography through KesselsKramer Publishing – including the in almost every picture series, The Instant Men and Wonder. Since 2000, he has been an editor of the alternative photography magazineUseful Photography.
Erik is also noted for his particularly original curated exhibitions such as Loving Your Pictures at the Centraal Museum Utrecht, The Netherlands and at Les Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie, Arles. He was one of four curators (alongside Lou Reed, Fred Ritchin and Vince Aletti) of the New York Photo Festival 2010 where he presented the exhibition Use Me Abuse Me.
Aside from all that, Erik is a very nice man with a creative spirit second to none. His conceptual approach and playful attitude will push those who are open to exploring more lateral ways of image-making.
More about the man in question:
Erik Kessels (1966) is a founding partner and Creative Director of KesselsKramer, an independent international communications agency located in Amsterdam. Kessels works and has worked for national and international clients such as Nike, Diesel, J&B Whisky, Oxfam, Ben, Vitra and The Hans Brinker Budget Hotel. He has won numerous international awards. KesselsKramer comprises thirty-eight people of eight different nationalities and has been in operation since 1996. It believes in finding new ways for brands to tell stories using whatever media is most relevant to their message.
Erik has designed, edited and published several books of vernacular photography through KesselsKramer Publishing –including the in almost every picture series, The Instant Men and Wonder. Since 2000, he has been an editor of the alternative photography magazine Useful Photography.
He has curated exhibitions such as Loving Your Pictures at the Centraal Museum Utrecht, The Netherlands and at Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie Arles. He was one of four curators (with Lou Reed, Fred Ritchin and Vince Aletti) of the New York Photo Festival 2010 where he presented the exhibition Use me Abuse me.
Advice: Photographers often just go straight to presenting their projects. Erik likes talking to the people behind the work first, hearing their motivations, where they're coming from, why they make what they make. It's always good to chat with the photographer: after all, reviews aren't about meeting portfolios. They're about meeting people.
In terms of the work itself, Erik likes to be surprised. That's the most important thing: being surprised by the idea behind the photography.
A Selection of his works:
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