I began photographing at sixteen when I got my first paycheck from the local movie theater to purchase a 35 mm film camera, a Canon EOS Rebel G. The camera then never left my side the rest of high school. I was compelled to document everything from nature to the people in my life.

As life progressed, photography may have taken a backseat, but I always found my way back to it. My book, Abstracted Distractions: teetering between here and gone showcases images from the past twenty years.

My work explores images of nature that are lonely and still, and those of people that show direct emotion. Heavily inspired by photographer Nan Goldin, my favorite subjects are of real life, which sometimes mirrors the sadness that engulfs us.

Goldin once stated, “I used to think that I could never lose anyone if I photographed them enough. In fact, my pictures show me how much I’ve lost.” As I look back through this series, I feel this truly sums up my work. While shooting friends, family and self portraits, there were moments of intimacy, documenting my relationships at the time. I tried to capture these moments in hopes I could never truly forget love and loss if I have a tangible record of it.

I want to do more portraiture of people within the community with nature and architecture as backdrops. I’ve always flipped flopped between black and white and color photography. I feel each brings its own unique qualities to the images. I tend to choose black and white when the image may have a lot happening. Black and white can help guide the viewer to particular parts of the image rather than the chaos some color photography can bring. 

I am curious about experiences with mental illness, taking care of the mentally ill, or lost relationships due to mental illness. I interview subjects on what they are most excited about for the future.

I feel it’s also important throughout to see the hints of happiness, the title of my novel due to be published next year. Each participant could be anonymous or be photographed from the side or back.

I’m the founder of Starlight Art Consultancy whose goal is to inspire artists to see their full potential and put it to use. I want every creative person to realize that he/she already has everything needed inside of them to thrive as an artist.

Originally from Cambridge, Mass., Kimberly Flynn relocated to Savannah, Ga. five years ago. With fifteen years of art and business experience, she now offers artists helpful tools in the art business as the author of Businify Your Art Life. Flynn serves as board treasurer for the art non-profit, ARTS Southeast, whose mission is to make Savannah a destination for art and culture. It supports established and emerging artists by engaging a diverse community with creative programming that develops awareness and appreciation of the arts. Flynn’s work has been shown from Los Angeles, Calif. and Louisville, Ky, to Newport, R.I. and Savannah, Ga. She has recently been awarded a residency at Watershed Studio’s Artist in Residence program in Galway, Ireland in April 2023. It will further Flynn’s Hints of Happiness photography project which will accompany her novel.