Jeff Kennel at his exhibit in Buckley Center. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Kennel)
By Nastacia Voisin, Staff Writer voisin15@up.edu
A traveler, teacher, photographer and storyteller, Jeff Kennel describes himself as "some kind of modern-day gypsy".
In 2011 Kennel left his position as UP's multimedia specialist to become a photojournalist and videographer for the UP's Marketing and Public Relations eam. Kennel does everything from taking photos for UP's Facebook page to preparing professional videos. Among Kennel's successes are a series of 30-second TV ads for UP's "Heroes" Ad Campaign.
Kennel's photography is an incidental passion - a hobby that's developed out of a desire to document untold stories. In addition to teaching Creavity & Digital Tools, a new course, Kennel also has a photography exhibition titled Seeds of Harmony on display in Buckley Center from Feb. 11 - March 7.
Kennel said he's always been a rover, a lifestyle that's influenced his perspective. Constantly moving with his father's job, from grade school to university, Kennel picked up his education across the states.
"Moving around a lot, you're always the outsider, always the new kid," said Kennel. "So I became friends with the other outsiders."
Kennel was inspired to travel to Argentina as an exchange student with the Rotary Club after making friends with international students in high school.
"I think that was the beginning. I really caught the bug then," Kennel said.
Back in the states, Kennel attended the University of Oregon and then spent time at a community college. He now has a B.A. in philosophy from Penn State University and a M.A. in international multimedia journalism from the University of Bolton.
Between these accreditations is over a decade of international travel and work.
At a crossroads after graduating from Penn State University, Kennel decided to join the Peace Corps in Cape Verde and work as an English grade school teacher.
"I didn't start out as a photographer, said Kennel. "I started out as a teacher".
Since Cape Verde, Kennel visited an array of countries, including Libya, Thailand, China, Argentina, Chile and Japan and learned to speak proficient Spanish, English, Brazilian Portuguese and Cape Verde Creole.
For Kennel, teaching was a means of living in another country, getting into another culture and learning about how other people live and think.
Traveling also inspired him to document what he saw through photography, and he stole hisbrother's camera to take with him to Cape Verde.
"Photography is just a means for me to document what I see, and to tell a story," Kennel said. "I'm just a person who observes the world and is sometimes lucky enough to show my work, and hopefully start a conversation."
Kennel said photography is something he does for himself, not for awards.
"For me it's always been, 'This is interesting let's do this' - to my own peril," Kennel said. "I've come to the point where I don't care if I get published."
Kennel returned from abroad to come to Oregon, and his job as a multimedia specialist has become a teaching position within the communication studies department.
"For me, it was the perfect plan: media production and teaching," Kennel said. "If I can teach what I do, and if people are interested in learning to storytell with digital tools, that's fantastic."
The Seeds of Harmony project sprung from Kennel's own experience as a gardener.
Part of a Portland public housing project, Seeds of Harmony is a community garden about three miles from UP. While working in the garden, Kennel got to know the ethnically diverse and socially marginalized people beside him, and discovered they had stories to share.
"I thought, 'This is great. This is a story that needs to be told'," Kennel said.
At the time Kennel was developing the project, the garden was helping over 72 families build a community. As a gardener at Seeds of Harmony himself, Kennel worked with his subjects to document their stories. He took all the photos in the garden, making sure that he was capturing as realistic a portrait as possible.
"I find things that maybe no one is interested in, but that I'm interested in," Kennel said. "And maybe, by telling an interesting story, I can at least get people to pay attention."
Kennel said the exhibition, was just to get people interested in the surface stories of the gardeners. Kennel hopes the portraits inspire people to explore the mission of Village Gardens.
Patricia Bognar, adjunct instructor and gallery curator, thinks the exhibit is meaningful to students.
"It's a little more personal because it's about North Portland and because it's about UP," Bognar said.
Kennel sees the exhibition as a way for the gardeners to share their piece of the world, but he wants to leave interpretation to his audience.
"I don't have this idea that I'm right -ever," said Kennel. "As a photographer, I'm saying 'this is what I see.' This is what I've experienced. You have to figure out what it means."
Entertain Me: Swan Lake soars
Everyone who knows me knows that I like culture. For me, a few hours of being transported into an alternate reality through dance, music or theatre is a few hours well spent. So when the opportunity to attend the Oregon Ballet Theatre's production of "Swan Lake" arose, I could have pirouetted with excitement.
"Swan Lake" was beautiful in every way. From Tchaikovsky's timeless music, to the gorgeous costumes and scenery, and not to mention the wonderful dancing, the ballet was a treat for the eyes and the ears. The tragic love story between the Swan Queen and her Prince was very moving, and the two leads showed excellent chemistry when they danced together. Major kudos go to the prima ballerina, Xuan Cheng, who plays the dual roles of the innocent and pure White Swan, Odette, and the evil, seductive Black Swan, Odile.
My only criticism of the production is that there were three short 10 to 15 minute intermissions between the acts. This constant disruption shattered the illusion of the ballet, which was disappointing for me as an audience member.
All things considered, though, "Swan Lake" was gorgeous. Its run at the Keller Auditorium ends this Saturday, and that performance is actually the prima ballerina's (pun intended) swan song, as she is retiring her dancing career (I did not see this ballerina, Yuka Ilno, in the performance I attended).
If you are at all interested in awesome music, lovely dancing, or even just a good old love story, "Swan Lake" is sure to impress.
-Kathryn Walters
This photo is part of a documentary about Ouk Vandeth and his work for the NGO International Bridges to Justice and the Cambodi- an justice system. This is Mao, a 19 year old Pursat resident accused of stabbing someone in a fight. He has been detained without council for over six months. With pressure from IBJ, he was finally given a trial. However, his case was given an interlocutory judgment until key witnesses can be found and more investigation can be done. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Kennel)
Seeds of Harmony Gardener (Photo courtesy of Jeff Kennel)
(Photo courtesy of Jeff Kennel)
