Terry Hope: Thomas Kellner, in: Fine Art Photography, 2003
Having found a way of expressing himself, Kellner was able to develop his theme and to expand it to cover a whole series of different subjects. While being a time-consuming and expensive way of working, those who saw the work reacted very warmly to it, and Kellner realised that his pictures had widespread appeal. In order to exploit this interest, however, it was vital for him to show his portfolio to as many people as possible and to try to establish a market for his pictures to raise the money to allow him to continue.
Consequently, he travelled extensively to meet as many people as possible that were in a position to give feedback or to advise on his marketing strategy. At the Arles Festival in southern France (held each year at the start of July) he met photographer and gallery owner Manuela Hoefer, who invited him to show his work at the Contemporary Photography Fair in London, an event that she organises herself. This was an opportunity to show and to sell work directly to collectors, and it introduced Kellner's style to a new, wider audience.
Later Kellner showed his work in Hoefer's London gallery and established steady sales there, and since that time he's devoted himself to developing contacts with other outlets around the world. After seeing his work, the Ffotogallery in Cardiff commissioned him to produce a series of images of buildings in the city using his distinctive style and his work is now being carried and collected by some of the most prestigious galleries and museums in the States, such as the Art Institute of Chicago.
Kellner's idea has now developed to encompass more than one film, allowing bigger pictures (see previous pages) to be produced, and the option of using a larger format than 35 mm is also being explored. Kellner's approach demonstrates that as well as discovering a distinctive style and establishing a body of work that has continuity, it is also important for photographers to continue to interrogate their chosen style, and to take their work forward so that it’s always developing.
Hope, T., 2003. Fine Art Photography. Creating beautiful images for sale and display. Mies: RotoVision. p.1-4.
