The Project
"In November of 2013, my feet touched the ground in Honolulu. At that moment, I finally accomplished a life-long dream of traveling with my camera to every state in America. Since then I've been looking for another creative challenge that's on par with this realized goal.
Cross Country Camera is a documentary photography project that involves photographing artists in their studios and places of inspiration. When completed, I will have photographed creators in all 50 American states, thus completing a new challenge combining travel and art.
This blending of my artistic and practical skills with four decades of experience will bring to life a new collection of photography that documents the work of serious artists in my country." --Stephen Edward Kennedy Creve Coeur, Missouri--
The Artist
Artist's Statement: "My camera is a witness to history in a way that my fallible memory is not. No photograph is objective but it can describe something that is an observable truth. The physical act of engaging the shutter memorializes unfolding events, not just for myself as the viewer but for future seekers of how the people in front of my lens lived in the moment. Every frame stands alone and also supports the ones before and after. Together, these images become a visual essay about a singular subject anchored to a specific place and time. The assembled grouping of photographs becomes a documentary that tells a visual story in a universal language. All lives of artist are unique. These essays show the world that this path is not just possible but attainable."
The Artist's Journey
2019-Present | Documentary Photographer
Self-produced reportagé, monographs and published books, captured all across America, Ireland, Italy, South Korea and UK.
1989-2019 | Advertising Photographer
Clients include Amgen, Ford, Google, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Merrill Lynch, Pfizer, Siemens, United States Army and Wells Fargo.
1986-1989 | Editorial Photographer
Assignment and contract work for Associated Press, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, St. Louis Cardinals (NFL), Washington University and various newspapers.
1980-1986 | Student & Freelance Photojournalist
Bachelor of Journalism, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
1965 | Born in Illinois