MAA Artist Spotlight: Raymond Klein
Updated: Mar 15, 2022
Today’s Artist Spotlight is focused on the experienced and versatile photographer Raymond Klein.
As a kid, Raymond came across his dad’s Kodak camera, sparking a lifelong passion for photography. While he does creative photography now, he actually began his career in 1952 as a photographer in the United States Air Force, a position which he held for four years. In 1956, he moved on to work as an image producer for Martin Aircraft Company in Cape Canaveral, Florida. His commercial photography career started in Chicago, where he worked with advertising imagery—during this time, he experimented quite a bit with lighting effects, which helped him create images seen in many advertisements, such as those for Sears.
After retiring in 1994 and moving to Vancouver, Washington, Raymond began to gravitate towards more creative photography. He’s enjoyed becoming active in the Pacific Northwest art scene, and his art has been in many exhibits in local galleries.
Raymond’s Diverse Portfolio
Browsing through Raymond’s work is a fun, meandering adventure. While his portfolio is impressively diverse, he treats every subject with care and importance. Whether they are vibrant up-close birds, action shots of classic cars, or whiskey flowing into a glass, his affinity for lighting techniques is obvious and impressive.
One interesting area of Raymond’s work is his more abstract photography, in which his subjects depart from the physical world and instead let us into another one. Radiance, Iridescent Evening Flare, and Cosmic Design all fall into this category, along with many more. His landscape photography is another area that we love—especially his magnificent photograph of Mount Hood, where he captures the glowing moon suspended above the mountain.
Throughout his many photos, an interesting common thread is Raymond’s ability and affinity for capturing the ephemeral. His photographs capture a moment—which is the nature of the medium—while also placing a unique weight on them through framing and lighting techniques. His variety of jobs in the photography world absolutely shines through his work.
View Raymond’s Work Online
Raymond has some lovely writing to accompany his images online, so be sure to check them out for further insight. Lastly, of course, we want to mention that Raymond has several photography books. For example, Visions of Light, a collection of his photography and poetry, is available for purchase. Scroll down to see them all listed below.
More of his work can be seen online on Fine Art America and on Facebook.