I love when knowledgeable and interesting people come to me for portfolio reviews. That’s what happened this past April in Portland, Oregon, during the Photolucida reviews. The highly talented and inspiring Sandra Klein sat down with me to show me a newer body of work, still in progress, for some feedback and to share the work from the community-minded place she lives in. I’ve known Sandra for several years, though only passively, so this was a great treat for me and an excellent chance to talk shop about working in the photographic arts. We share the same Los Angeles-based community of artists, so it was especially lovely to engage with her in a more thoughtful, albeit brief, period of time. So many people only look to me for insight into analog-based projects, but I highlight photographic work and engage with artists who work in all types of processes and means. Sandra was aware of that, so she got extra points for being extra aware. But then, that’s where she always seems to be. And that’s why it’s so easy to see her as someone with thoughts on the creative process that I’m curious about.

Basically, I see Sandra Klein as the consummate professional artist with more knowledge and expertise in their little finger than most have in their entire being. She knows when to reach out and ask challenging questions and is open to when to accept ideas into her workflow and produce something both beautiful and meaningful. She thinks things through and works out the kinks, clear-headed but still curious about where a project may take her. For these reasons, it seemed a no-brainer to dig a little deeper and ask questions about how and why she makes art. I knew I’d learn some valuable things along the way, and it is my hope that you will find the same in her words and images. So please get to know a friend, colleague, and member of an engaging and thriving art community. Take it away, Sandra.

Bio -

Sandra Klein is an artist whose images, whether captured with a camera or composited, portray a layered world that, though filled with anxiety and trauma, still is rich with joy. She was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, and received a BFA from Tyler School of Fine Art in Philadelphia, PA, and an MA in Printmaking from San Diego State University. Her images have been shown throughout the United States and abroad, and she has had one-person shows at the Griffin Museum of Photography, both the Lishiu and Yixian Festivals in China, and the A Smith Gallery in Texas. She was the recipient of the Lorser Feitelson Grant jointly with artist Betye Saar.

Her work has been featured on Lenscratch, The Boston Globe, A Photo Editor, What Will You Remember, Musee Magazine, Beta Magazine, All About Photo Magazine, and Diffusion magazines and is held in public and private collections.

Interview -

Michael Kirchoff: Every visual artist experiences that spark that drives them in the direction of image-making. How did you get your start, and what were your early influences?

Sandra Klein: I began making art as a child. I was very shy and spent most of my time reading and drawing. I took clay classes and loved them. I drew constantly and went to a high school where I had the opportunity to take advanced art classes. There was a freedom in the art room and a camaraderie in that open setting that I loved. Art and play were one and the same to me until college.

MK: Do you have any recollection of your first introduction to cameras and photographs? Was your interest in them immediate, or did it take multiple reminders of image-making to reel you in?

SK: My first experience with a camera was in an undergraduate darkroom class at Tyler School of Fine Art in Philadelphia. I had a wonderful teacher named Irving Sherman. Each member of the class was given an Olympus Pen W half-frame camera to shoot with. The camera shot 72 grainy black and white photos per roll! Irv’s philosophy was all about learning to see. His role models were Henri Cartier-Bresson, Minor White, and W. Eugene Smith. I remember one specific incident that really impacted me. Another student showed her work in a critique and, as an aside, pulled out a small series of ducks swimming in a sylvan setting with sparkling water. She offered that these images were shot just for fun, as opposed to her more serious work. Irv was taken aback and criticized the division she saw between the two series. His remarks were in total contrast with the philosophy of Tyler at that point. The overwhelming sense among the professors at Tyler seemed to be that art had to be formal and serious. Making art to sell commercially was looked down on. My photography class was so refreshing and freed me in terms of how to make art. When I think now of what the response to NFTs would have been, I laugh!!!! I actually tried to get a job in a photography studio in NY when I graduated, but I was only offered jobs as a stylist.

MK: What is it that drives you as a visual artist?

SK: From an early age, I loved making art. I love being in that space of magic-making and adventure. Making art excites me, and at the same time, it’s a space of mindfulness for me. When I was young, art was about color, shape, and mark-making. During the rise of Feminist art, I became interested in the Decorative and Pattern Movement, I think especially as a reaction against the more masculine art that was touted during undergraduate school. It wasn’t until I received a one-year fellowship that included a mentorship with Betye Saar that the intention in my work changed radically. Betye questioned why I was creating colorful happy work when I was going through a divorce and heartbroken. Our time together had a huge impact on me. It honestly hadn’t occurred to me that my art to this point was not related to my sense of self. Since then, art has been a way for me to examine, understand and portray my experiences, whether they be of heartbreak, grief, or joy. The journey is an attempt to understand myself and, at the same time, humanity.

MK: I had a chance to see your latest works and speak with you briefly about your latest projects. I immediately notice not just your professionalism and experience in this medium but your embrace of what you might not necessarily know yet with the direction of your current work. How can you be so experienced yet open to new challenges that others feel overwhelmed by? Your curiosity feels insatiable, and I love that about how you work.

SK: Thanks for that, Michael. When I begin a project, I’m usually unclear about its direction.  There’s an excitement with lots of ideas. I feel a certain pressure to work within the parameters of “the Portfolio,” yet I try to leave limitations behind, especially at the beginning of a project. It may be because my background isn’t grounded specifically in photography but rather fine art in general that I feel free to try out lots of ideas. It’s the art making that’s exciting for me, which is why I love layering, collage and sewing. I do love shooting in camera, but it almost feels like cheating to me not to augment the image.  

MK: You recently showed me your latest collection of work, Meeting the Shadow. Can you give us a little background on this project and where you feel it sits within the framework of past projects?

SK: Meeting the Shadow is a great example of how I work. Photographs of flowers are included in almost all of my series, but during Covid, I spent most of my time photographing my garden and my neighborhood walks. The beauty in decay was everywhere. This series had so many iterations. I chose to disregard the rush to create a portfolio. It wasn’t until two mentors, Aline Smithson and Joann Dugan, suggested the importance of the shadows in my images that the shadow became my focus. Visually, the images in this series hearken back to Noisy Brain, with their distinct foreground and background. And here also, there is a sort of template, a system as in Noisy Brain. And the theme, as in Grieving in Japan, is about accepting the heartbreak in life along with the joy. But this series, in many ways, is completely unlike any work I’ve made before in that, for the first time, I am working with the element of chance to begin my images. I give up all control, methodically and meticulously eliminating the highlights of the flower images. What is left of my initial photograph is bits and pieces. The more abstract, the more exciting for me because I then begin to play, to commune with this unfinished-looking image and bring it to life with collage and embroidery. 

MK: I’ve always loved your work, Noisy Brain, as well. Your embrace of digital technology is so proficient and recognizable that it feels easy to spot any of your photographs at a distance. I’m assuming your earliest start in photography was analog-based. I wonder what drew you away to excel so greatly in making digital technology so creative and easy to digest?

SK: I did study analog photography in school, but I majored in printmaking in both undergraduate and graduate school. My love of layering, of printing several etched plates on top of an image, began in the printmaking studio and seems to have become embedded in my psyche. Whether working in mixed media or photography, it informs my imagery. A good example is how Noisy Brain developed. I began with the idea of investigating the brain. During the investigation, I noticed beautiful old illustrations of brains on Etsy. The idea of combining one of those brain images with my profile as a beginning template for the series intrigued me. Without even starting an image, I already had two layers. I feel most comfortable slowly creating an image, and there are often many trials until the image works for me as a completed narrative. I have an image that is part of Noisy Brain called “Creative Growth,” which is actually an explanation of my art-making process. The simpler left side of the image is an example of how I begin working, and on the right side, an image with hundreds of layers shows how my images develop. I loved photographing the plants from my garden for this image, even pulling some from the ground to show the roots, but the arranging, and sizing, creating the movement in the image is what I most enjoyed. I am a collagist at heart, which is why layering in Photoshop works so well for me.

MK: Do you find it better to construct your images in a mindful way or work more intuitively?

SK: I almost always begin making my work with a plan…but in the end, my intuition takes over.  I usually use both processes in each image. The magic comes with utilizing my intuition.

MK: What do you feel is the best way to grow as an artist? Are there any fears behind treading new waters?

SK: To grow as an artist, one has to take chances. I don’t believe in taking the easy way out. There is a lot of thought that goes into my work, and it is intended to be personal and narrative. My imagery is not traditional, and some reviewers have questioned its validity as even being photographic. Although I have studied the history of photography, I don’t think about that history per se when starting a new series. I was excited once I came upon the concept of Meeting the Shadow but knew it would, in a way, be an outlier. I think I have become more and more accomplished when defending my choices, yet of course, there is always anxiety and hope that my work will be appreciated. My goal is always to create successful images. I think of myself as someone who uses the camera to make art.

MK: Is there anything from your past that you feel has had a dramatic influence on how you create images today?

SK: I’ve had many life experiences that have impacted me in huge ways. As I child, my family lived in a small apartment above my dad’s pharmacy in an Italian Catholic community on the east coast. Because we were the only non-Christian family in our town, I was constantly aware we were different, and the feeling of being an outsider has never left me. But I was lucky to live not far from New York City, and I visited its museums often. I very clearly remember specific images from MOMA that had a huge impact on me. Travelling and living outside of the United States, in particular in Mexico, opened my eyes to the richness of other cultures, especially through art and literature. And finally, the Women’s Movement really clarified for me so many of my own feelings about the male-dominated art world.

MK: Do you collaborate with like-minded individuals on projects, or do you find it more productive to handle everything yourself? Are there any collaborations in the past that have been particularly beneficial?

SK: I have never collaborated in art. I would relish the experience but have always worked completely on my own. I actually have a difficult time even asking for advice.

MK: Once you’ve achieved finding your particular style or voice, do you ever feel the need to break out and follow a different path?

SK: There are times that series feel complete and end. I am quite conscious of not wanting to repeat myself, and it’s important to me that my work remain fresh. I want my work to be consistent yet, at the same time, be new and exciting.

MK: What does a typical creative day consist of for you? Do you consider yourself a workaholic, or do you keep a schedule of time for family, socializing, vacation, etc.?

SK: My mornings are leisurely. I need my coffee and read two newspapers before beginning work. I love exercising and train three times a week. I tend to work throughout the rest of the day. My husband has been working at home since the pandemic, but my studio is in a separate building, so we have our own spaces. I relish having a solid schedule and am filled with anxiety when I have finished a series and haven’t found something new to work on. I actually worry that I have depleted my ideas! I do travel but am always looking for new images and ideas wherever I go.

I think of myself as fairly solitary, and although I have to say since the pandemic, I truly miss getting together with fellow photographers for drinks or at an opening. Even critique groups have been online.

MK: Was there a specific point in time where you felt that you had found your voice in photography and became satisfied with the direction of your work? Do you ever truly find yourself in a good place with your images, or are you always searching for more?

SK: Surprisingly, when I look back at my work, I see a consistency that I was unaware of. The graphic quality of my work, the layering, the importance of color, the use of embroidery and collage to create more of a physical object, the themes of the female gender, and searching to understand an environment that has always seemed somehow challenging for me to fit into are to different degrees within all of my work. Yet, I always question my work…always. 

MK: What’s next for your photography or recent projects? Is there anything new you have in the works?

SK:  I am excited about my new project, entitled Mother Envy. I’ve always been envious of people who had loving, supportive relationships with their mothers, something I became especially aware of in testimonials on Facebook. This series consists of two distinct types of images: digital portrayals of my mother’s public persona using old photos of her as a young woman in contrast with in-camera still lives that are metaphors for our difficult, painful relationship. 

You can find more of Sandra’s work on her website here.

All photographs, ©Sandra Klein