Karen Safer, a native Angelino, is an internationally exhibited, award-winning photographic artist and poet with a musical bent. Her passion for art began when given camera & crayons at 3 and immersed in California’s visual language. A lifelong traveler beginning with Kodachrome and Black & White analog cameras, she has explored over 230+ countries/territories, embracing both the exotic and unexpected. Influenced by her father’s black-and-white photography and her mother’s insatiable curiosity for knowledge and travel, her inspirations range from ancient Assyria to conceptual works of Cindy Sherman. She began as a painter before focusing on photography in college, earned a master’s degree in art (UCLA & CSULB), and has a professional career in design and architecture. With 14 solo exhibitions and participation in over 770 shows, she has received more than 630+ awards, including 1st Pl Julia M Cameron Award, Botticelli Prize Florence, PISPA, TIFA, reFocus, 1839, CEV & DecAgon 1st Pl, Exposure One, etc. Her work has been featured in 190+ publications, such as LENS, Dodho, ArtTalk, ArtTour, Docu, One Eyeland, Spotlight, Visual Poetry Journal, etc. She has exhibited on 5 continents worldwide, even alongside Jackson Pollock in a group exhibit in Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and continuously in physical and digital formats in London, Paris, Rome, Berlin, Prague, Venice, Florence, Barcelona, Budapest, Dubai, Mexico, São Paulo, Seoul, Sydney, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Zurich, New York to Los Angeles, etc. Her work is held in numerous collections, and she is a member of many organizations, including LAAA-825 Gallery (monthly exhibitions), LACP, IAA-USA, APA-LA, CA Art League, etc. A self-described "romantic old soul" with intellectual cravings, she navigates the digital world while connected to art’s timeless essence. She embraces color but venerates black & white – realistic & abstract. And considers herself “uncategorizable” – just a picture taker. "An artist has the whole world big or small to capture." kjsafer “Wherever I am is my favorite place in the world.” kjsafer