Karen Numme

https://www.karennummephotography.com / @karennummephotography

Karen Numme was raised in the Bronx, surrounded by pre-war buildings whose walls seemed to breathe history. From an early age, she was captivated by the urban scape—the rhythm of streets, the geometry of windows, the quiet endurance of stone and steel. That fascination with structure and space inspired her pursuit of degrees in Landscape Architecture and Architecture, disciplines that continue to shape how she sees and interpret the world around her.

That architectural foundation allows her to move through the city as both observer and participant—seeing structures not just as forms, but as living spaces that hold memory, absorb light, and speak of time. Her early artworks—monochromatic collages made from metal, plexiglass, and spray-paint drawings that explored light and particles in space—were exhibited in museums and galleries across the United States. Over time, her practice evolved toward photography. Working primarily with the iPhone, and until recently in black and white, she continues to explore light, reflection, and spatial tension. Her composites and layered images create environments that feel alive—abstract, surreal, and kinetic. She wants viewers to step into these spaces, sense their uncertainty and beauty, and construct their own narrative within them.

Karen has won awards and shown her photography in galleries in Europe and the United States. 

In my ongoing series Life of Buildings, I explore the spirit of architecture itself. I photograph to reveal the personality and movement within structures—their textures, rhythms, and the interplay of light and shadow. I do not see buildings as static forms; they speak, they dance, they evolve. Shadows add mystery, while reflections give them breath. Reading In Praise of Shadows reshaped how I perceive the built world—it taught her to honor the power of negative space and the quiet beauty in what remains unseen.

I approach all my work with the same sensibility of giving life to people and structures. In my series Destroyed LA Rebuild LA, the viewer is immersed in the heat, the ruin, and the resilience of a city under fire. The burning landscapes and fractured forms become metaphors for fragility and survival—for the human and architectural will to endure and rebuild. That series can be viewed on my website.