Courtesy of The Artist and Fellowship and Jessica Silverman Gallery, San Francisco and Pace Gallery, New Work
This year’s FotoFocus Biennial, a month-long revelry of photography, begins October 1, spanning 65 venues across the Greater Cincinnati region. Titled The Long View, the event features lens-based work from more than 500 artists worldwide, tackling topics from artificial intelligence to queer identity.
“FotoFocus’s vision is to inspire conversation about the world through the art of photography,” says FotoFocus Executive Director Katherine Siegwarth. “That is the real joy of photographic exhibitions: Everyone has an entry point and it allows us to broaden our perspectives, if we’re willing to talk about it.”
Started in 2012, FotoFocus’s Biennial has grown to be one of the largest photography displays in the country. With 74 total exhibitions, The Long View includes major solo projects by contemporary artists including Trevor Paglen, Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Nancy Rexroth, and Widline Cadet.
“The Long View was really us trying to consider how photography, which is considered this instantaneous moment or act, [can] help us think across time,” says Siegwarth.
Made purposefully ambiguous, the theme can be taken literally and figuratively. While some artists use wide shots, others have chosen to present retrospectives of their careers, such as Nancy Rexroth: Secrets of My Power at the Cincinnati Art Museum. Rexroth’s exhibit displays more than 50 years of art, including her seminal work IOWA. Made with a toy camera, the photobook has been considered an influential resource for photographers.
Image courtesy FotoFocus
“This is really a deep dive review of her career, and not only will it have the photographs, but it has a lot of ephemera from her archives,” says Siegwarth. “It’s going to be a really thoughtful exhibition that helps people truly understand her artistic vision.”
The Biennial kicks off with a free opening program from September 30 to October 3. The first three days will feature exhibition tours and receptions at venues across the region. The program will conclude October 3 with artist talks and a keynote lecture by professor and historian Daniel Immerwahr. From noon to 6 p.m. at Memorial Hall, featured photographers will discuss their work in a broader context of the theme and the current landscape.
“Every Biennial, we’re two months away from an election,” says FotoFocus Artistic Director Kevin Moore. “This election this fall obviously is going to be very important. And FotoFocus [doesn’t] shy away from shows that engage political events or social events.”
The recently opened FotoFocus Center will house Trevor Paglen: the most merciful thing in the world. Curated by Moore, the multimedia show examines the relationship between surveillance and photography. With faces delineated by lines and letters to fiery skies cleaved by satellites, Paglen’s photographs mix organic scenes with near-invisible mechanization. During the opening reception, Paglen will give a performance on the present state of technology, including the rapid advancement of AI.
“A lot of Trevor Paglen’s show is about the way that AI imagery scrambles our sense of reality,” says Moore. “Photographs have always been the benchmark of how we understand the world around us…But when you have artificial images, it becomes incomprehensible.”
Courtesy of The Artist and Fellowship and Jessica Silverman Gallery, San Francisco and Pace Gallery, New Work
Up north at the Columbus Museum of Art, Queer Constellations: Photographs from the Aronowitz Family Collection features a conglomeration of renowned past and present queer artists, such as Robert Mapplethorpe and Catherine Opie. From lovers embracing to bodies adorned in tattoos and piercings, the artwork explores LGBTQ+ life and identity in the United States.
“It’s a pretty large exhibition that focuses on a queer lens, showing a broad scope of humanity, different perspectives, and ideas,” says Siegwarth. “There’s a remarkable breadth represented within this program.”
Other participating galleries include the Contemporary Arts Center, the Taft Museum of Art, and the Dayton Art Institute. However, the Biennial extends beyond traditional art spaces to include parks, hotels, and universities. The full list of participating venues can be found here.
While many venues are already free, the Biennial Pass Program allows viewers to access all FotoFocus exhibitions at no cost. The program also offers free bus trips to Dayton, Columbus, and Cincinnati, providing transportation to participating venues. The Biennial runs from October 1 to 31.
