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CHRIS KEENAN

Focus doesn't come easy for someone like 28-year-old Chris - to say that he has a lot on his plate is quite an understatement, hence his decision choose an alias like Prime Objective. Whether that's helped narrow his broad spectrum of interests is another question.

Coventry-born Chris began his creative training in photography, yet soon discovered after secondary school that he was happiest when not limited to a single discipline. After having done his A-Levels and worked for two years, his multi-disciplinary cravings began to take hold of him and he went on to study Multimedia Design at De Montfort University, Leicester. He experimented in many different creative, visual techniques such as graphic design, film and VJing, along with photography.

Not long after finishing uni, Chris began organising a club night at the Custard Factory in Birmingham, for which he littered tables with his signature Lomography whilst DJing and VJing with friends. It wasn't long before Midlands-based magazines Fused and Blowback began to take notice of his unique style of photography, primarily using Lomo cameras, which create casual, 'shoot-from-the-hip' photography with over-saturated colours and often blurry results.

He was commissioned to go to New Orleans in January 2005 by Blowback and Southern Comfort to document the main players of the underground music scene. His extensive work from New Orleans ended up taking on another focus soon after Hurricane Katrina struck. On his third and most recent trip back, in February 2007, Chris began his 9th Ward Scars series, this time taken on Polaroid, which perfectly combines his approach to photography - an informal, point-and-shoot process - while at the same time skilfully documenting the grim devastation still extensive, over a year later.

Chris' approach to photography is reflected in his video work, primarily his personal projects, which he shoots on Super-8 film producing nostalgic, short clips reminiscent of old '70s holiday videos. His passion for Super-8 and Lomo have led to his own personal oeuvre, in which he never strays far from the musical elements in his work. Having frequented gigs and festivals since he was a young child, with his folk-singing mother, and also now having taken up the mandolin, probably has a little something to do with this.

Next on the cards for Chris is a photographic and audio project that allows him to focus his abilities closer to home: on the destruction of 'greasy spoon' cafes in the Midlands region. After a recent visit to a local establishment, Chris was "disgusted yet compelled" - as he ordered a questionable meal - to document the loss of these institutions of English life, rapidly being destroyed to make way for regeneration. He intends to exhibit the images along with audio recordings of interviews with the owners and the locals who frequent the cafs.

Photographically, Chris feels he is ready to try new techniques and see where this will lead him. When discussing future projects, he does become quite cryptic - and maintaining this level of mystery leads me to believe that it's something big he's got brewing. Suffice to say we'll hear and see much more from this multi-disciplinary individual.

CONTACTS

www.primeobjective.co.uk

chris@primeobjective.co.uk

Judge: Lauren Heinz, editor, EI8HT magazine
Photography: Dave Remes

Chris was one of 20 4Talent Award winners in 2007, our hotly tipped young creatives to watch, to hire and to collaborate with. To meet the other 19 click here