Sara Kerens – Photographer

By Robin Phillips

Sara is a visual storyteller, with an eye for people, a heart for social justice, and a responsibility to document the world around her in an honest way.

Photographer Sara Kerens was that kid in college who always had a camera around her neck. She liked to document and find meaning in seemingly mundane life. She realized early that photographing people made them feel visible and gave them a voice. To this day, she loves sharing people’s stories through her photography.

A native of the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, she spent time throughout the state as well as England before planting roots in New York City. Her passion is capturing the human experience – and she is equally stirred by fashion, travel, commercial, and documentary work.

As a visual storyteller, she has photographed iconic figures such as Barack Obama, Margaret Thatcher, Coco Rocha, Cardi B, Lil Wayne, Susan Sarandon, Alan Cumming, Fabien Cousteau, and Chinese civil rights activist Chen Guangcheng.

Long-form projects are particularly meaningful for Sara. Collaborating with her Syrian friend Majd, she traveled through Turkey and Europe, inspired by him and current events, to document and tell the stories of refugees escaping traumatic events in their homeland. Her book Displaced focused on the individuals and lives behind the unfolding tragedy. The International Center of Photography (ICP) nominated Displaced for its prestigious Infinity Award, and selected it for a month-long installation in NYC.

A versatile artist, Sara partnered with Yes Way Rosé on many of its projects and the company’s first lifestyle book. She also enjoys working on local and national projects with brands like American Express and TikTok.

For the past ten years, Sara has been one of designer Christian Siriano’s go-to photographers. After a brief but kismet meeting in a Dallas Neiman Marcus, Sara began working for Siriano and since then, she has photographed his shows and collections. Not one to shy away from a little chaos, she has captured some of the behind-the-scenes beauty that happens backstage at New York, London, and Paris Fashion Week. Her work has been featured in several top publications worldwide.

No matter the subject, Sara’s work seeks to develop understanding and connection through the common humanity in all of us. ☐