Michael Kenna -Venice. Memories and Traces

April 3 - 26, 2025
Artist’s Reception: Thursday, April 3, 6 - 8 PM
Book Signing: Saturday, April 5, 2-4 PM

Michael Kenna (British, b. 1953) was born in Widnes, England. Celebrated as one of the world’s most prominent landscape photographers, Kenna is known for his poetic black & white images from around the globe. His mysterious photographs, often made at dawn or in the dark hours of night, concentrate primarily on the interaction between the natural landscape and human-made structures. Kenna is both a diurnal and nocturnal photographer, fascinated by times of day when light is at its most pliant.

The April exhibition at Harris Harvey Gallery celebrates imagery from Venice as well as the new monograph, Venice. Memories and Traces, published by Skira Edition in 2024. In a recent CNN story, Julia Buckley and Michael Kenna discuss the silence, the presence of absence, and depth of his work in the feature “This photographer is chasing the ‘ghosts’ of Venice.” Kenna’s work is defined by extended exposure times, sometimes lasting several hours, unveiling hidden nuances of the Venetian landscape. His camera lens captures a diverse range of subjects: fog-enshrouded chapels and rooftops, star trails over bell towers, archways of palaces, laundry lines, gondola bows, serene bridges, weathered statues, and twisted poles rising from the dark lagoon, evoking the presence of ancient figures. Through masterful manipulation of light, shadow, and reflection, Kenna’s photographs convey a strikingly poetic and intense portrayal of Venice. A book signing event with Michael Kenna will take place at the gallery on Saturday, April 5, 2-4 p.m. celebrating the book, Venice. Memories and Traces, published by Skira Edition. Copies of Venice. Memories and Traces and a selection of other Kenna monographs will be available for purchase at the gallery.

During Kenna’s career, his photographs have been shown in nearly 500 one-person gallery and museum exhibitions throughout the world, and are included in over one hundred permanent institutional collections, including; The Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris; The Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo; The Museum of Modern Art, New York; The National Gallery, Washington, D.C.; The Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai; and The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Michael Kenna received the prestigious Officer des Arts et des Lettres medal in Paris in 2022.