The photography hanging on the walls in Jitters holds no greater meaning than the eye’s first observation: interesting people doing interesting things.
Looking no further than City College, this lower State Street coffee shop found 20-year-old Keith Chancey’s photography-of skateboarders and wolf costumes-worth an espresso shot or two.
“I just take pictures because I’m around a lot of interesting things,” Chancey said. “I have a lot of interesting friends that need to be documented.”
He was invited to hang six pieces of his art on Jitters’ brick walls throughout November.
His displayed photographs represent part of his lifestyle. Growing up in the Santa Barbara skateboarding scene, he decided to highlight his friends’ talents.
Two photos of local skateboarders hang in Jitters, along with one of his friend in a Wolverine Halloween costume taken at City College’s studio.
“I just hope people see the humor in it,” Chancey said. “I think it’s pretty funny and I get good reactions.”
Despite the noise pollution from the coffee grinder, loud rock music and cars driving by, multiple customers stopped to notice Chancey’s work. A few people commented on his photograph of a hand wearing a ripped surgical glove.
Chancey said that there was no abstract intention for the photo, but happened merely by accident. He was testing the lighting in his home studio with his hand, and his glove ripped.
“A lot of people give me a lot of explanations,” Chancey said. “If you want to look for different meanings, I’m sure you could find them.”
After responding to an ad on Craigslist, he got a job shooting photos of T.C. Boyle, the world-renowned author of “The Tortilla Curtain,” inside of his Montecito home designed by famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
Chancey’s work has been published on the cover of Los Angeles-based Forth Magazine’s November-December issue.
“I got paid $20 to do it,” he said. “That was the coolest shot I ever got.”
Chancey said he doesn’t photograph for publicity, but that it’s a hobby.
For now, Chancey will continue to study English, dabbling in photography-until the next big shoot calls his name.