As I told Jenny Kendler while making her portrait at the Civic Opera House: “Most people I photograph are CEOs sitting behind a desk asking what to do with their hands.”
Kendler wasn’t going to settle for that. With experience in commerical photography, the artist came prepared with ideas, an outfit and makeup. She was determined her photo wasn’t going to be boring.
For the fall arts preview, the Tribune featured a number of people in various fields. Kendler was recently named the artist-in-residence at the National Resources Defense Council.
She is working on a project for Expo Chicago where visitors will enter a dome and whisper confessions. These will be transformed into birdsong and broadcast, so everyone will hear but not understand them. You can read much more about her eco-centric art in Lori Waxman’s profile.
The project isn’t ready to show yet, though, so we had to come up with other backdrops. Kendler was dressed and prepared for the shoot with several ideas about standing or balancing on an object she made. We were inside a cavernous, gutted room which left plenty of room to work.
Her makeup was so intriguing I particularly liked the tighter face shots, and we quickly collaborated on several ideas to produce a variety of photos. It would be a pleasure to work with such creative subjects every day.
