Brave and resilient creativity: In interview with Arthur Keef
About
Arthur Keef is a self-taught photographer from Kenya, whose work crosses over into the fine art realm through beautiful composition, styling and use of colour. He shares how his process involves both an expression of his mind and a search for authenticity.
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Which three words would you use to describe yourself? Are these different to how you would describe your photography?
I would describe myself as brave, resilient and creative. I would probably describe my photography as the same, since all my works are just insights of what’s going on in my mind.
What is the most important lesson you have learned so far as a self-taught photographer?
Produce the work no matter how you feel about it at the end.
what role does your cultural identity play in your work?
As a Nairobi-born creative, in a majorly Black society, I have focused my work to trying to photograph our skin colour in the best and most authentic way possible, maintaining the rich tones and textures.
How would you say photography, in particular beauty and portraiture, allows for personal expression?
Beauty and portraiture is fairly easy to do, what makes the difference is how you execute it. Personal expression plays a huge part in setting your work apart from the rest.
“Personal expression plays a huge part in setting your work apart from the rest.”
Tell us more about ‘Louku Diriba’ – what was the story behind this editorial project, and where do the concept, aesthetics and visual styling come from?
LOUKU DIRIBA was a part of 10 personal projects that my team and I worked on for our first solo show case. We wanted to fuse abstract art with fashion, makeup and of course photography to make pieces of art that should not be visually cohesive but would end up being exactly that.
What does creative collaboration mean to you?
It’s the coming together of different minds to make something worthwhile for us, and hopefully for the future generation too.
What has been your proudest achievement so far as a creative individual?
Being able to showcase my work in print for people to see has definitely been an amazing experience. Creation does not have to end with one post on social media or my website anymore, I can now bring my work to life in print and hopefully have people own a few pieces. ✺
Find Arthur online
www.keefphotography.com
@keefphotography
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