Kanya Iwana (@kanyaiwana) is an Indonesian born director, writer, photographer, and founder of the Ki Studio, which she calls "Kanya and friends making cool shit". With a degree in performance and theatre and filmmaking, she holds a revered multidisciplinary background. Her vision provides a multiplicity of depth, her work glued to the roots of creativity. Iwana is here to convey a narrative, a concept, a deeper connection done through the lens of the romantic.
A misfed tonal trip, an offtune click, an ethereal dream, it's something that Iwana, a cinephile herself appreciates. An unintentional movement could be the potential perfect shot, nothing is off limits. Especially when filming. Timing is everything, or it can be nothing, but in those kooky off tone moments, gold can be made.
When looking at Iwana's style and mood it's soft, gentle and heartfelt. It lingers in every corner and every space. Soft hues adorn colours, muted in tone and present through light. Dreamy in nature and vintage in feel. Her imagery is love shots to the world, pleasing to the eye, and bursting with passion, an interesting sight into her creative mind.
Iwana enjoys stories, writing stories and providing narrative. Something warming that makes her heart smile, whether it be a script for a campaign or an advertisement for beauty, she wants to provide an environment that is open, truthful and personal. An open space is a good place for her clients to relax, feed off good energy and produce the finest work. A lot of Iwana's clients are based in the beauty and fashion industry but when she's not providing aesthetically captivating imagery, Iwana delves into her passion projects that touches on subjects such a societal expectations, motherhood, beauty standards and colorism. Her content is truthful and unravelling.
A powerful woman, Iwana understands the importance of consistency, to work smart, and not to give up, especially during rejection. As a mother, she juggles six lives working on her passions, securing clients and providing for her family. Her hard work and effort has got her work published in Vogue, I.D, W Magazine, Billboard as well as many others . She's been the creative director and photographer behind Sabrina Claudia's About Time cover album, Ashton Sanders (Moonlight) and the House of Aama AW 2017 fashion film.
Iwana encompasses light and love in her still imagery. Her work is a reflection of moments from before and moments to come. She likes to take her time, be present and make long lasting relationships. She feels this industry focuses too much on mass production and attaining clout by the big names they shoot instead of being patient and making lots of tiny meaningful connections. That's what stands beautifully about this photographer, her ability to connect deeper.
