Photography is a magical and transformative process that helps us find the light hidden in the darkest of places. Through each photographer’s engagement with this unprecedented moment, alchemy arises at the intersection of person and place. The alchemical magic doesn’t stop there. Photo editors and curators work at another level of alchemy. They weave together seemingly disparate images and ideas through intuition, discernment, narration, and context to create their own visual meaning and metamorphosis.

This guest curated gallery was created by Katherine Leonard for her online Zoom talk The Alchemists of 20/20: Photography and Transformation. Her selected images point us towards personal and cultural metamorphosis.

Katherine Leonard specializes in collaborating one-on-one with photographers, artists, and small business owners in the dynamic process of growing, visualizing, and launching their brand identities.

While pursuing her Masters in Psychology degree, Katherine merged her big love of photography with her academic path. She created a means to employ photography as a therapeutic and learning tool. For her innovation and contribution to the field of psychology, Katherine received the distinguished award of Academic Scholar of her class from Dominican University in San Francisco, CA. As a part of her fieldwork, Ms. Leonard curated two exhibits in San Francisco featuring her at-risk students; at the Bay Area Discovery Museum and the Museum of Contemporary Art.

Over the past 25 years, Katherine has served her clients well as producer, agent, editor, creative consultant, educator, and mentor. She has collaborated with many great photographers, most notably Peter Beard. Contracted to help produce his retrospective exhibits, Katherine worked with Centre National de la Photographie in Paris, and curator Robert Delpire, to David Fahey of Fahey Klein in Los Angeles, to Michael Hoppen Gallery in London and The Time is Always Now in New York.

Katherine resides in Charleston, South Carolina, with her husband, son, and two dogs, where she continues to work with clients in the alchemical process of visual branding.

The Alchemists of 20/20: Photography & Transformation - Katherine Leonard