Growing up I was fascinated by art and the power of storytelling. Maybe it started with The Lion King, when I’d force my dad to rewind our VHS tape over and over again. Or maybe it started when I read the Magic Treehouse series in second grade. I was always an art class kid. I spent my time doodling my favorite characters and creating elaborate adventures for my stuffed animals after school. But it wasn’t until my parents gave me my first camera that I really started to create things.

My mom worked for Creative Memories when I was growing up, so from a young age I was surrounded by film photography and scrapbooking. I would shoot rolls of film around our small house on Chicago Street, taking all sorts of strange photos of my Beanie Babies and American Girl dolls.

And while film photography has always been apart of my life, a lot of my own artistic journey centers on the modernization of photo and the rise of the internet. I learned to understand myself and the world around me through social media, back when it was just beginning.

I’ve been caught in the liminal space between Then and Now for my entire life, and it has given me a passion for both embracing the new and remembering the old.

Rather than specialize in any one type of photography, I’ve committed myself to expanding my craft and shooting everything that brings me joy. I’ve shot influencer weddings, non-profit brands, indie musicians, even heavy metal music videos and haunted Halloween houses. I decided a long time ago that I wasn’t going to limit myself, and as a result, my portfolio is just as all over the place as I am.

The common thread in my art is storytelling.

Whether I’m photographing a weekend getaway with friends or editing a fiction novel or writing a song, my true passion lies in the story itself. I long to capture the human spirit and inspect it from all angles to better understand myself and those around me.

I’ve been running my own freelance business since 2013, and shooting weddings since 2015. Over the years my photos have been featured in Billboard, The New York Times, The Offbeat Bride, and Read Poetry. My YouTube channel has garnered over two million views, and my self-published poetry collection debuted at #1 on Amazon. I was also published by Andrews McMeel Publishing in Amanda Lovelace’s collection, the mermaid’s voice returns in this one.

I grew up in Northwest Indiana, but I’ve been living in Nashville, Tennessee since I came here for school a decade ago.

When I’m not making art, I’m probably reading, rock climbing, binge-watching a new show, or making a playlist on Spotify.

jennaclarek@gmail.com

@jennaclarek