Arts & Entertainment

Photographer Brings New Orleans, Jazz Festival to Kent with Exhibit

Debra-Lynn Hook has New Orleans in her blood, and this summer she’ll put herself and her work on display for Kentites to explore with the upcoming photography exhibit “Way Down Yonder in New Orleans: A Journalist’s Perspective.”

The Kent resident spent her teen years in the The Crescent City and has strong family ties to the region, but for the past 10 years she’s made a pilgrimage to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival to capture the essence of her adopted hometown through her camera lens.

“The visuals there, it’s like a photographer’s paradise,” Hook said. “There’s no holds barred. And I’m not talking about decadence. It’s a very colorful city, and people are very open and their personalities are vibrant.”

Find out what's happening in Kentwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Hook’s exhibit opens at McKay Bricker Gallery and Framing on Main Street July 18. The gallery and gift shop is pulling everything from its walls to give her all of their space for her photographs — about 70 or more of which will be pulled from an archive of 10,000 images from the annual festival and around the city captured over a decade.

“Any time I can bring New Orleans to Kent is a happy time for me,” she said.

Find out what's happening in Kentwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Hook attended the University of New Orleans and later graduated from Louisiana State University’s School of Journalism. She’s spent the past two decades working as a professional photographer for news outlets, and she applies her professional experience to her approach to capturing the vibrant, and some times sad, stories of The Big Easy.

Her focus is often the jazz fest, which is held over two long weekends in April and features dozens of musicians performing myriad styles from reggae to R&B, brass and gospel. In between weekends, she spends time with family in the area and shooting images in and around New Orleans.

Each photo on display in the exhibit will feature a short synopsis to give the image context.

“The reason why I call it a journalist’s perspective is I’m not going to just throw the photos up there,” Hook said. “I’m constantly looking for the picture that tells the whole story of New Orleans, which is why I have 10,000 photos because there’s so much to tell. I’m always looking for the quintessential New Orleans shot that will say it all and give people an understanding of what New Orleans is and why I love it so much.”

The exhibit runs from July 18 to Aug. 13 and the photos on display will be available for sale.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Kent