Kenyatta Kelechi

Born and raised in Kailua, Oʻahu, artist Kenyatta Kelechi (b. 1990) uses the 19th-century technique of wet plate collodion photography to examine concepts of Indigenous identity and connection to family and place. The highly technical collodion process relies on the correct balance of chemicals and results in hauntingly beautiful images that resemble vintage photographs. Although he comes from a richly varied background (his mother is Hawaiian, Chinese, and white; while his father is African American, French, and Native American), as a youth he felt disconnected from his Hawaiian heritage. The laborious process necessary to create a glass ambrotype or an aluminum tintype allows Kelechi to spend time learning from his subjects and has become a way for him to actively participate in his community. His images express the desire to engage with and learn from community members while sharing equally with his subjects the authority of representation.

The artist received his BFA from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 2016 and has exhibited at Above the Equator Gallery, Hilo; Arts and Letters Gallery, Honolulu; Hō‘ikeākea Gallery, Leeward Community College; and on PechaKucha.com. He was the subject of the short film “Yatta,” directed by Jake Viramontez. His work has appeared in Honolulu Magazine, Flux Hawaii, Hawaii News Now, and Halekulani Living. Kelechi’s work can be seen on Instagram @_manachrome. 

Photo by Amber Mozo, 2019