Announcements

Museum Acquisition Announcement

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I’m thrilled to share that Live Action Role Players, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, 2022—from my series The Last Fair—has joined the permanent collection of the Worcester Art Museum. Director Matthias Wascheck describes the work as “address[ing] the ramifications of monoculture, a seldom discussed issue with considerable ecological and economic impact.” 

A heartfelt thank you to curator Nancy Burns and donor Ed Osowski for championing this acquisition. Ed and I recently reconnected while collaborating on projects with the museum—a full-circle moment! 

Since 2012, my work has centered on rural America’s quiet revolutions, where tradition and transformation collide. Through photography, I explore the unspoken tensions of class, community, and identity—stories often overlooked but deeply woven into our national fabric. 

Poolside in Houston after the HCP Gala Auction with Ed Osowski and me with my Worcester Art Museum hat.

Live Action Role Players, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, 2022, archival pigment print, Edition of 3 + AP, 40 x 54 inches framed.

Walker Art Center {Acquisition}

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World-class contemporary art center in Minneapolis, MN acquired The Best of the Best and Dumber and Dumb artists books today as part of the Rosemary Furtak Artist Book Collection, honoring the memory of Ralph Burnet and the support of Jennifer Phelps.

The Walker Art Center is home to the first artist book collection for a museum library, founded by the visionary Rosemary Furtak. She believed these unique creations deserve to be experienced in person, not tucked away in a vault. 

It was a profound moment to hand off my work alongside Peggy Burnet and my longtime gallery director, Jennifer Phelps to John Lyon and the wonderful staff.

Dropping off work at the Walker Art Center library in Minneapolis on December 3, 2024.

Grant Recipient | Puffin Foundation

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I received my first grant from the Puffin Foundation to present a community engagement program and exhibition of photography in collaboration with the Gizhiigin Arts Incubator on the White Earth Ojibwe Reservation in Mahnomen, MN. Programming details will be finalized Spring 2025. The grant will increase awareness and visibility of my work and will also shine a light on the life and work of people in the Minnesota. Meeting new people in these communities allows for genuine exchanges between me and my subjects as we collaborate together to create photographs reflecting their lived reality.

Opichi Drum performance at Mahnomen County Fair, White Earth Indian Reservation, Minnesota, 2023 from the series The Last Fair

Colorado Photographic Arts Center {Acquisition}

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The COLLECTOR'S EDITION: The Unchosen Ones: Portraits of an American Pastoral (MW Editions, 2021) with a pair of prints found a new home in the permanent collection of the Colorado Photographic Art Center (CPAC) in Denver, CO this year, thanks to the support of Executive Director Samantha Johnston. In January 2024, I offered a talk as part of PHOTOVOX, "Get the Show on the Road! Tips for Creating and Booking Traveling Exhibitions,” and afterwards as part of my follow-up with Samantha I offered a direct donation to their collection. The CPAC permanent collection contains more than 800 prints donated by 180 photographers, a resource for the Colorado community to view, study, and learn about nuances of fine art photography.

2024 Summer County Fair Lineup

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TheMinnesota State Arts Board (MSAB) awarded me a FY2024 Creative Support for Individuals Grant for $10,000. I am especially grateful for the support.

I look forward to engaging with county fairs across greater Minnesota through agricultural photography exhibitions, storytelling experiences, and tintype demonstrations. Each time I photograph at county fairs, my project continues to grow and evolve, largely because of the interactions I have with the subjects of my photos and participants that attend my workshops and exhibitions.

I hope to see you at the fair!

Blanden Museum of Art {Acquisition}

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The Blanden Museum of Art acquired two photographs from my series The Unchosen Ones and Out to Pasture to be enjoyed by the public in its permanent collection, courtesy of Olson-Larsen Galleries. Special thanks to Eric Anderson to making this happen. These two photographs have special meaning to me— they are among my first exhibited photographs from personal projects:

  • (LEFT): Anna and Helen, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, USA, 2016 from the series The Unchosen Ones was the portrait exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery (London, England) in 2017 as part of the "Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize Exhibition.” This photograph from the series The Unchosen Ones (Published in The Unchosen Ones: Portraits of an American Pastoral, MW Editions, 2021).

  • (RIGHT): Stella, Isanti County, Minnesota, USA (right) was exhibited as part of my first solo exhibition of photography at Central Lakes College (2017) and exhibited in a solo exhibition at Gallery 360 in Minneapolis (2017). This photograph from the series Out to Pasture was published in The Sheep and the Goats (Kehrer Verlag, 2017).

Blanden Art Museum Director Eric Anderson (left) with R. J. Kern (artist) and Alyss Vernon, Gallery Director at Olson-Larsen Galleries, (right) holding newly acquired photographs by the museum at the reception of The Unchosen Ones on May 4, 2024 in Fort Doge, Iowa.

Stella, Isanti County, Minnesota, USA (2016) from the series Out to Pasture (published in The Sheep and the Goats, Kehrer Verlag, 2017), archival pigment print, 20 x 24 inch sheet size, Edition 1/10 + 2AP, courtesy Olson-Larsen Galleries.

Anna and Helen, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, USA, 2016 (2016) from the series The Unchosen Ones (Published in The Unchosen Ones: Portraits of an American Pastoral, MW Editions, 2021), archival pigment print, 20 x 24 inch sheet size, Edition 3/10 + 2AP, courtesy Olson-Larsen Galleries.

North Dakota Museum of Art {Acquisition}

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North Dakota Museum of Art acquired two works currently in Divine Animals at Veronique Wantz Gallery up through April 13, 2024. I am excited for these handmade works from my series The Best of the Best to be enjoyed by the public in its permanent collection thanks to patron Bruce Gjovig and curator Matt Wallace.

VIEW THE ENTIRE SERIES >>

Installation view: Divine Animals at Veronique Wantz Gallery, salt print over archival pigment prints added to the permanent collection of the North Dakota Museum of Art (Grand Forks, ND).

Supreme Champion Chicken Male / Female Pairing, 2018 Minnesota State Fair, salt print over archival pigment print, 2019, Edition 2/5, 20 x 24 inches, from the series The Best of the Best.

Supreme Champion Llama Male / Female Pair, 2018 Minnesota State Fair, salt print over archival pigment print, 2019, Edition 2/5, 20 x 24 inches, from the series The Best of the Best.

Divine Animals at Veronique Wantz Gallery

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I’m excited to share work at the debut photography exhibition at Veronique Wantz Gallery (Minneapolis, MN), running March 8 - April 13, 2024. I’ll present highlights in a mini-retrospective format since 2012 with projects including: Divine Animals: The Bovidae; The Unchosen Ones; The Best of the Best; and my newest series, The Last Fair.

OPENING RECEPTION Friday, March 8th, 4-7PM, free and open to the public.

Artist Talk (CWU Museum of Culture & Environment)

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On Thursday Jan. 25 at 4:00 pm PT, I will offer an artist talk hosted by CWU Museum of Culture & Environment (MCE) discussing the process of composing the portraits for the exhibition of photography, The Unchosen Ones: Portraits of an American Pastoral, and what we can learn by paying attention to the shifting landscapes of rural life. I promise a few photo bombs by chickens and barn cats.

I'll appear virtually but the talk will be held virtually and in-person. To attend, in person, come to room 104 in Dean Hall on the CWU campus (1200 Wildcat Way) and to attend virtually, register HERE >>

For questions, email museum@cwu.edu or call (509) 963-2313. The MCE is open Wednesday – Saturday from 10:00am - 4:00 PM.

Mable, Pastoral Study, 2020 from the series The Unchosen Ones.

Mable and Stella, Isanti County, Minnesota, 2020 from the series The Unchosen Ones.

Mable and Stella, Isanti County Fair, Minnesota, 2016 from the series The Unchosen Ones.

WEBINAR: Tips for Creating and Booking Traveling Exhibitions | Jan 10 @ CPAC

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To kick off the new year, I'll share all the nuts and bolts of how I booked (in a matter of months) over 12 exhibitions for my photographic project, The Unchosen Ones. Traveling exhibitions support my creative practice, keep my books alive, and create predicable income.

Hosted by the Colorado Photographic Arts Center (CPAC), I’ll be presenting at PhotoVox January 2024, sharing answers to the following questions and more during this virtual event: Once your solo exhibition comes down, how do you keep the show on the road? What practical constraints make it easier to earn a “yes?” What does an exhibition proposal look like? What does a written agreement look like? What factors go into the decisions of exhibiting completed work in a space (framing, mounting, transporting)?

Webinar Fee: $10 (Free for CPAC members)

Preview of custom framing for touring exhibition.

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Happy Winter Solstice 2023

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Tonight is the longest night of the year in our home. Each day will bring more light until summer. I love this metaphor as I move through the remaining days of 2023, a time for rejuvenation and reflection. I appreciate health, friends, and family… and a good dose of humor. Cheers to 2024!

Year 13 of the Tomte series has arrived, offering a glimpse of our family antics. In this “lucky 13” year, an odd event occurred while traveling in Norway. We received a phone call after visiting a real tomte house: my wallet had been found before I knew I lost it! The location? In a bed with a dozen tomtes! The watchful creatures have picked up a few creative tricks: watching how to make culture boxes, embracing a Santa wishlist, battles with Lego Star Wars, football battles with the Pumpkin People (while embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion), while indulging in Mema’s holiday cookies! Ruby the beta fish— our newest edition to the family— tends to the alpha side when confronted by tomte. And even one has learned to fly! 

CLICK TO VIEW POST >>

Meet Blackjack

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Meet Blackjack. He’s not the smartest in his class, nor the best looking. Although, he can do an amazing impression of The Thinker with profound pondering. Enter the "Office Ten.” Office Tens make our work lives more interesting— they’re desires we fabricate, romanticize. I ask myself: What would this look like in the animal kingdom, specifically Highland cattle in northern Norway?

Balancing the 'real with the ideal' is one theme in my work which usually starts with a question. It might take me a year to create a photograph that hits this theme. I do a little happy dance on the way to the framers when I find it. Yes, this all goes through my head when selecting work for exhibition and sale.

Blackjack, archival pigment print mounted on dibond, 39 x 52 inches, Edition of 3 + AP

Blue Ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair!

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This week starts the “Great Minnesota Get Together” aka the Minnesota State Fair, a special place in my heart since my wife brought me there on a date in 2011. We enjoyed the animal and people watching and loved the creative activities building and fine arts exhibition. A few years ago we entered a friendly competition of entering the events. She won a blue ribbon for her pickles. And this year, I won mine.

R. J. Kern and Juror Kristine Heykants at the 112th Fine Arts Exhibition at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair with the First Place photograph.

I’m proud to share this blue ribbon (first place) photograph, Live Action Role Players, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, 2022, at the 112th Fine Arts Exhibition at the 2023 Minnesota State Fair— the largest art exhibition in the state. Kristine Heykants, the photography juror, writes in her criteria statement:

I am looking for images that give witness to the breadth and depth of human experience in a way that is unexpected, with the desire to assemble a collection of images that represents photographic practice in Minnesota in 2023 in a holistic and inclusive way. Within the context of the State Fair where artists are limited to one entry, there is the added challenge of creating a statement or narrative in one image. I am excited to see pictures that make me want to learn more about the subject and the photographer.

Digital catalog HERE >>

Special thanks to juror Kristine Heykants, the participants who offered trust in front of my camera, The Photo Touch for printing, Jim Ross framing, Penn Barnes for transportation, Matt Steaffens for lighting assistance, Zach Rinehart’s leadership at the Blue Earth County Fair, and the support of my family— all essential ingredients required to create this photograph:

Live Action Role Players, Blue Earth County Fair, Minnesota, 2022, archival pigment print, 31 x 41 inches framed, Edition 2/7 SOLD.

About the series:

The Last Fair showcases summer animal contests, aspiring to enhance awareness in the changing face of American pastoral life. “If this was the last year of your county fair, what would you miss most?” I asked this question at over a dozen fairs, in response to the Ramsey County Fair (Minnesota, USA) remaining canceled since 2019. “The kids with their animals,” I heard. I considered how joy isn't fully appreciated until gone. Small agrarian communities in the U.S. are changing, and the county fair isn’t necessarily the highlight of a kid’s summer the way it used to be. The 360-acre family farm has grown to over 10,000 acres, which has had a huge impact on rural America. County fairs are among the casualties. Although there is evidence that this way of life is disappearing as kids leave the farm, the crisis of climate change and a concern for both sustainability and stewardship of the land point to a path for survival for agricultural practices and traditions. Using a large format camera with studio lighting, I follow a photo documentary approach, not allowing myself to composite images, remove elements, or rely on artificial intelligence (AI). Orchestrating a photograph requires months of planning— and a hefty dose of patience and a sense of humor.

Portfolio Reviews: Identifying and Hitting Goals {Pt 2 of 3}

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This week I shared the second in a three-part series of helping fine-art photographers grow.

Portfolio reviews have been an important part of my career development. Lots of questions you should consider when planning your portfolio reviews: Which ones to choose? How to select reviewers? How do you create memorable leave-behinds? What questions do you want to ask? Recommendations for follow-up from portfolio reviews. How important is networking? What type of networking do you recommend? I also shared actionable tips for building a photographer’s fine-art network specific for those who don’t like to ‘network.’

Acquisition: OSU Museum of Art

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A year after the Oklahoma State University Museum of Art booked my touring exhibition, I reached out to the curator, Carla Shelton, and offered her an upgrade to the exhibition of eight silver gelatin prints. She obliged. Since the loan fee was higher than the original budget, I offered to donate my artist proof silver gelatin print (printed by Keith Taylor). She said yes!

What a nice set of Walker Evans prints the OSU Museum of Art has! Wonderful that they made their collection digitally accessible and searchable, too. I stopped dead in my tracks seeing Marion Post Walcott’s "Children of Tenant Farmer, Younger One with Rickets on Poor Eroded Land, Wadesboro, North Carolina” Seeing that poor child with rickets made me just think how appreciative I am for healthy children.

See the entry here >>

It's the People 2023-24 Photographer

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I’m excited to be a part of Hennepin Theatre Trust's It’s The People 2023. This public art project, made in collaboration with Clear Channel, highlights members of the community in the theme of “Network of Mutuality.” This year’s project will also launch alongside the first Minnesota Triennial. The portraits will be displayed on billboards and large-scale banners across Minneapolis this summer, and the Minnesota Triennial will be hosted by Public Art St. Paul June 24 – September 16.

In collaboration with Sachidanandhan Venkatakrishnan, President of the Tamil Association of Minnesota (Minnesota Tamil Sangam, or MNTS, a non-profit organization), I will create one large-scale tableaux photograph depicting MN artists performing Tamil dances and traditional music instruments rooted in southern India and Sri Lanka.

As a portrait photographer since 2006, I am interested in sharing stories of the Minnesota community, especially those underserved in the arts. Lighting, styling and a formal approach elevate my subject out of the ordinary, telling a visual story of strength, character, and confidence.

I was intrigued with the theme, “Network of Mutuality” phrase drawn from the 1963 Martin Luther King, Jr. quote: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

R. J. Kern selected as a portrait photographer for the “It’s the People” commission by Hennepin Theater Trust.

ACQUISITION | University of Minnesota

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The DELUXE PORTFOLIO EDITION of The Unchosen Ones (edition of 10 + 2AP, $5500) was acquired by the Gorman Rare Art Book Collection at the University of Minnesota. Special thank you to curator Deborah Ultan and Jennifer Phelps (Burnet Fine Art & Advisory) for making this happen!

Photo by O. Kern

Tomte, Year 12

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Year 12 of the Tomte series is here, chronicling on-going Kern family antics.

CLICK HERE FOR THE BLOG POST >>

Warmth and humor lurks beyond the home, extending to school and the sledding hill. We have another cousin to feature, as well as evidence of intergalactic alien visitation (all welcome here) documented by my son and his first Nikon DSLR camera, gifted by my Dad. Witness homemade ginger-bread houses, a candy home, and a Lego battle while cookies cool. New to this holiday series? Discover the antics from 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021. Enjoy!