Kelli Klymenko

Renowned photographer and author. One of the few masters of motion photography and visionary art. He was the former proprietor of the famous east coast metaphysical shop known as "Spellbound", which was open from 1989 through 2003. He founded the UCOMO (The United Coalition of Mysterious Occurances) in 1999. He is the author of the novel, 'Finding Angels' which his production company Xenthia Rising Productions is producing as a feature film. He wrote and published seven different titles, three of which are photography books, three metaphysical books and his novel. His 2003 Gallery showing of his 'Nemesis Collective' released 19,000 of his haunting images and drew over 3000 guests. A recent review: "March, 2006 The often used juxtaposition of good and evil, of dark and light find new expression in Kelli's Klymenko's photographic art. Klymenko is not afraid to take on religion and the occult when examining what is truly virtuous. Often icons of "good" turn out to be emissaries of evil. Religious leaders, rather than promoting harmony and civilization, can manifest an aggressive drive to judge and punish, often sadistically. Kelli often flirts with the occult to make this point. What society perceives as evil may be no worse than what we think of as good. Klymenko's pictures make this point startling clear to anyone who will give it even a bit of thought. Longer exposures and double exposures are used to make some elements of his photos seem spiritual or metaphysical. The use of angels and white elements as representations of good are not new, but Kelli carries it off with some originality. Male figures are often depicted in shadows or in black. Perhaps an unconscious reflection of the fact that the male hormone, testosterone motivates aggressive drives in humanity. In fact I think that Klymenko relishes black and white photography because it divides the visible world into good and evil, light and dark, black and white, male and female. Even when no "special effects" are used we often see strange paradoxical images such as an innocent school girl wielding a mean looking butcher knife Kelli's astute enough to recognize that not all females are nurturing and that all of us, whether male or female, have some of that hormone within our systems. My philosophy of art is that it should not just depict the artist's feelings. That's only the first level of analysis. Good art says something that touches the viewer as well. Great art say something to us all in a way that resonates in our hearts and provokes our intellect. Kelli Klymenko is, in my honest opinion, destined for greatness. Scott Widitor Beverly Hills CA"