Artist spotlight : Kendahl Bell

ARTIST STATEMENT:

My work feels like the bliss of a deep breath. It’s surreal, yet rooted in authenticity. I create images that exist between what is real and what is imagined, where familiar moments are transformed into something eye-catching and emotionally charged.

I’m drawn to the quiet weight of everyday experiences. Love, anger, apathy, and the subtle shifts in between. These emotions often reveal themselves in the smallest details, and I work to bring those moments forward. Through deliberate use of light and color, I build atmosphere, allowing each image to hold both softness and intensity.

My process moves between observation and participation. I photograph not only what I see, but what I feel, using the frame as a way to translate internal experiences into something visual. Influenced by life, cinema, painting, and other forms of art, the work becomes a language for expression beyond words. Each image carries a piece of myself, creating space for connection. What is personal becomes shared, inviting viewers to find their own meaning within the work.

Social Networks :

Instagram: @kendahlbell

Website: https://www.two--sense.com/

Portfolio: Click here

Kendahl Bell

1. Inspiration & Style
Question: What initially inspired you to become an artist, and how did you develop your unique artistic style?
Answer: I had an epiphany to create honestly. I had some small inspirations for photoshoots at the time and the health major I was doing at the time in college was not what I really wanted for myself. I was always into film and art, so I made a change in my first semester of college to pursue that. I always knew deep down I wanted to do something that I love for the rest of my life, and I made my first concept shoot before the start of 2020 titled “Gunz n Roses.” At that time I wrote out the idea for that and 2 other shoots I did later that year drawing inspiration from music I was listening to, my personal problems at the time and older photographs I saw. I began to develop my style by just writing out what I wanted from each shoot so I could better visualize what I wanted to make. I always loved gritty, grainy, and vintage looks so I used that as a base to create my work and expand.

2. Creative Process
Question: Do you have any rituals or routines that help you get into a creative mindset when starting a new project?
Answer: Listening to music is my one constant when I’m trying to get into a creative mindset while working on a new project. It always helps me understand or even find the emotion I want to convey and how I may tell a particular story with a picture. I’m always going with the flow when I begin starting a new project. My personal life experiences and things I’ve witnessed greatly influence the process, and I integrate them into my work. I believe my art is a reflection of the times and myself, so it’s very important to me for ideas to flow naturally throughout throughout the days and weeks it takes me to finish an idea.

3. Artistic Influences
Question: How do you balance historical or artistic influences with your personal style, and how do these influences manifest in your work today?
Answer: I think I balance these influences by trying to learn from them creatively and technically. Every influence brings me new ideas, and I look at everything that could possibly inspire how I shoot something or even what I want to shoot in the first place. I try to use the historical and artistic influences to better navigate my why for all of this, maintain consistency, and build confidence in my style and my story.

4. Emotion & Expression
Question: How do you use your art to evoke emotions, and what role does emotion play in your creative process?
Answer: I use my art to evoke emotion through many aspects in each photograph, whether it be posture, colors, lighting, props, shot angles, and more. Emotion plays a massive role in my creative process because I don't shy away from how I feel every time I create whether I need a piece to evoke happiness or turmoil. It helps me hone in on how I will ultimately shoot a project so the image communicates that for the audience to see and feel for themselves. It allows me as an artist to embrace my emotions and express what at times feels impossible to explain.

5. Standout Projects
Question: Can you share a project that stands out to you and describe the creative process behind it?
Answer: A project that stands out to me is one of the ones I’m exhibiting in New York titled ‘Picture Me.’ This was one of my favorite images to shoot and I think it's one of my better framed and organized shoots I have done so far. I gained inspiration while doing research on the surrealist painter Rene Magritte. I stumbled across a photograph he took during his life that I initially thought was a painting. He was mirroring themes in his own paintings as he stood casually with a picture frame in front of his face in a room. Seeing that picture immediately inspired me to create something. I wanted the image to feel almost like some form of memorabilia with a surrealist vibe to it so I decided to add another model instead of a simple recreation of the image. I shot the photo over the course of two days in the studio starting with the image of the woman in the picture frame that is being held. I shot multiple headshot portraits and edited and printed the best one. Then I framed it and went back to the studio where both models would be together. I wanted everything to feel as still as possible as it coincided with the centered framing I did, making it feel symmetrical in a way. I came up with the idea to have the woman in the frame lean back in a chair to make her legs appear to float while I had the man stand in a statue-like posture to the left third of the frame, and I finally knew I had what I wanted from that project.

6. Feedback & Growth
Question: How do you incorporate feedback from critics or audiences into your work, and how do you balance this with your own artistic intuition?
Answer: I incorporate feedback by applying it where it is needed most and I determine that based on my artistic intuition. Sometimes I’m incorporating it in my pre production process, putting more attention to detail in visualizing and communicating my ideas to my models and anyone else that helps with a given project. Other times I’ll try something new with my lighting, editing, framing, etc. I balance it by understanding not every piece of feedback needs to be acted upon and I'll analyze feedback the way I do my artwork. I am my biggest critic but I still find it necessary to seek outside feedback about an idea, composition of my images, creativity, etc because it's a big part of how I have evolved as an artist up to this point. A friend once told me to stop rushing my work and to really think about what I create and why and it helped propel my work months later when I made Griselda that will be featured with The Holy Art Gallery. There’s a fine line I walk between listening and applying feedback and maintaining my overall artistic style because at the end of the day I need to feel confident in the work before anyone else does.

7. Motivation & Inspiration
Question: How do you stay motivated and inspired, even when facing creative blocks or challenges?
Answer: My love for art is what keeps me motivated and inspired regardless of creative setbacks. I have finally reached a point where I have an unwavering confidence in my artistic ability and I am only improving as time goes on. Every time I talk about an idea or take that next photo it makes me feel like this is exactly the space I need to be in and nothing else compares. Art mirrors everyday life in so many ways, and regardless of the ups and downs, it will ultimately be incorporated into my next shoot, so my understanding of that gives me some peace of mind at best and worst times.

8. Exhibiting Work
Question: How do you feel about exhibiting your artwork with The Holy Art Gallery, and what does this opportunity mean to you?
Answer: I feel blessed more than anything. I have never had this kind of opportunity to showcase my work and share my story in front of an international audience and I am excited to do so. While pursuing this dream I have heard a lot of doubt and received a lot of ‘no’s’ and I am thankful The Holy Art Gallery gave me this platform and to take another step in the right direction.

9. Future Goals
Question: What are your long-term goals and aspirations as an artist, and how do you plan to achieve them?
Answer: I ultimately want to be able make a living for myself through my artwork and be able to continue to create and grow. I want to be able to showcase my work around the world and connect with various audiences and I plan to achieve that by continuing to work, building up my portfolio, and applying myself to getting my name and my art out for the world to see.

10. Audience Connection
Question: What do you hope viewers take away from experiencing your art, and how do you aim to connect with them on an emotional or intellectual level?
Answer: I hope viewers can find parts of them in my work the same way I incorporate parts of myself. I want them to be able to analyze why I created what I did and feel the emotion attached to each piece. I try to connect with the audience in many ways throughout my work as well from the Title of the picture to the outfits, locations, and colors involved. Art is something that connects us all just like many other things in this world and I hope viewers can connect with me and my work in one way or another.