NANPA Marks the Passing of Jane Kinne

Jane Kinne with Scrub Jay

With great sadness, we inform you that Jane S. Kinne, a founding member of NANPA and icon of the association and the photo industry, passed away on Saturday, November 3, from complications of a stroke following surgery. She was 82.

Mrs. Kinne spent all of her professional life working in the photo industry, beginning as the audio visual librarian in Colonial Williamsburg, and then as the head of the photo & film department at the National Audubon Society in New York, NY. She was one of the founding members of Photo Researchers, a stock photo agency for which she worked and served as president for almost 30 years. She subsequently spent seven years as Vice President at Comstock, another photo agency in New York City, before officially "retiring" in 1993.

Mrs. Kinne was a nationally-recognized expert in the area of copyright law as it applies to photographic images, and consulted or testified as an expert witness in over 500 cases before the US Courts and American Arbitration Association.

She and her husband, Russ, were founding members of NANPA. She later served as its President, as well as the President of the NANPA Foundation, which barely scratches the surface of her role and impact on our organization. Her tireless work for NANPA was an inspiration to us all. Her enthusiasm, dedication and character are just a few of reasons NANPA has achieved what it has. She was incredibly generous with her time, expertise, and affection, and will be greatly missed by NANPA itself and the countless individual members she touched.

She is survived by her loving husband of 50 years, Russ, and her daughter Katherine (Kaci) and Katherine's significant other, Edward Kuhrt, of Iowa City, Iowa.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to the NANPA Foundation (10200 West 44th Avenue, Suite 304, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033-2840, USA), or the World Wildlife Fund.