By Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy
As we welcome the summer and make strides in shedding this sticky pandemic, museums and galleries are opening their doors more and more. An added treat: outdoor exhibits are back and we include several in our highlights below. Having ventured out, we can say it is exhilarating to see art in person again. We invite you to try it, too, and have gathered the most notable exhibitions featuring photography that you can see in person around Boston and beyond, listed by region for your convenience.
SOWA – Boston’s South End Arts District
“Lilac Collage” 30×24” Pigment inkprint, ©Shawn Bush, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.
Gallery Kayafas – Two solo exhibits challenge traditional representation: in Shawn Bush’s Angle of Draw, juxtaposed fragments of 20th century propaganda and original photographic interventions question the mighty struggle of white American men to retain environmental and cultural dominance; in Cousins, Kristen Joy Emack expands on the loving kinship and natural intimacy of growing Black American girls to reveal an alternative to the ubiquity of white narratives in the photographic canon. On view through July 24th, 2021, Artist Receptions will be held on Saturday June 19th from 11:00am – 5:30pm and on Friday, July 9th from 5:30 – 8:00pm.
For more information, go to: https://www.gallerykayafas.com/
“Braids” from the series Cousins by Kristen Joy Emack, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.
“Necker Cube” from the series The Mind of God by Fern L. Nesson, courtesy of the artist and Beacon Gallery, Boston.
Beacon Gallery – In Fern L. Nesson’s solo exhibit The Mind of God, photographic abstractions celebrate the elegance of mathematics and its confluence with spirituality. In unmanipulated photographs that capture the play and interplay of light, Nesson seeks to express moments when “mass becomes energy.” On view from June 18th – August 22nd, there will be an Opening Reception on First Friday, June 18th, 2021 from 6:00 – 8:00 pm.
For information, go to: https://beacongallery.com/event-works.php?eventId=15934&event=The+Mind+of+God
BOSTON PROPER
“Mother and Daughter” from Mothers of Plaza de Mayo
Adriana Lestido (Argentine, born in 1955)
1982
Photograph, gelatin silver print
Museum purchase with funds donated by Scott Offen, Photograph © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston – Treat yourself to Personal and Political: Women Photographers, 1965-1985, the newly installed rotation inside the Women Take the Floor show at the top of the Art of the Americas Wing. Representing a pivotal era in feminism, more than 30 works address themes ranging from the natural world to street photography to the domestic sphere and include renowned US photographers such as Diane Arbus, Sally Mann, Annie Leibovitz, Cindy Sherman and Ming Smith, as well as recently acquired works by under-recognized photographers from the Americas, such as Adriana Lestido (above).
To read our review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/personal-and-political-women-photographers-1965-1985-at-mfa-boston/
For information, go to: https://www.mfa.org/exhibition/women-take-the-floor
“Among the Stars” 2020, cyanotype on untreated cotton fabric, 32×43″ by Jaclyn Kain, courtesy of the artist and Gallery NAGA, Boston.
Gallery NAGA – Night Vision: Nocturnal Musings by NAGA Artists is a multi-media group show pondering the mysteries of the night, enhanced by an artist-picked sound track. Featuring photography by Jaclyn Kain (above), Lana Z. Kaplan, Robert Siegleman, Peter Vanderwarker, and Mary Kocol (below), the show will be on view June 4th – July 9th, 2021. For more information, go to: https://www.gallerynaga.com/exhibition/upcoming/
“House at Night, Isle of Wight” 2003, type C photograph (edition of 15), 28×28″ © Mary Kocol, courtesy of the artist and Gallery NAGA, Boston.
Boston Press Photographers Association, Pictures of the Year Contest, outdoor exhibition in Copley Square before heading to Nubian Square. Photo By Faith Ninivaggi
Boston Press Photographers Association, outdoor exhibits in Copley and Nubian Squares – Between the pandemic, the nation-wide Black Lives Matter protests and a presidential election, 2020 proved to be a busy year for news and news photography. For the first time in its 95-year history, the Boston Press Photographer’s Association in a collaboration with Photoville is presenting the winning entries for its Pictures of the Year contest in an outdoor installation in Copley Square through June 6th then moved to Judge Gourdin Park in Nubian Square from June 7th through June 24th.
For more information: https://www.bppa.net/2021/05/bppa-holds-exhibitions-in-copley-and-nubian-squares-first-outdoor-displays-in-organizations-history/
The Focused Eye: Our Unique Views outdoor photography exhibition at Fan Pier on the Public Green in Boston’s Seaport District, pictured with exhibit curator Emily Belz.
Boston Camera Club, outdoor exhibit at Fan Pier – Three cheers for more public art! Stroll the 250-foot long banner at Fan Pier in Boston’s Seaport District to enjoy The Focused Eye: Our Unique Views, 88 images curated by Boston photographer and educator Emily Belz, culled from members of the Boston Camera Club, (the second oldest of its kind in the country!) on view through November 2021.
For information, go to: https://bostoncameraclub.photos/?fbclid=IwAR1aUIQWa6ijWde7kcZ9CvJqJ10X4F9CeyjQb34CyIpxeffHJD0nrbB8hsk
“Eiffel Tower #5, 2019” ©Jeffrey Milstein, courtesy of the artist and Robert Klein Gallery, Boston.
Robert Klein Gallery – In May of 2019, the illustrious aerial photographer Jeffrey Milstein was granted rare permission to photograph Paris from a helicopter. One thousand feet up, with the door off, and tethered by a harness as he leaned out over city landmarks, Milstein’s training as an architect and keen eye for finding exquisite patterns of form and color have come together in “Jeffrey Milstein:From the Air.” Milstein’s aerial photographs from Paris, London, Los Angeles, New York and beyond will be on view through June 30th, 2021 by appointment only and signed copies of his latest monograph, “Paris From the Air” (Rizzoli 2021) are available for purchase from the gallery. For information, go to: https://www.robertkleingallery.com/from-the-air
In conjunction with his solo retrospective show Paul Ickovic: In Transit at Bibliotheque national de France (BnF, Paris) on view through August 22nd, 2021, the gallery is presenting a selection of B&W street scenes and improvised portraits beginning in the 1960s. The BnF exhibit highlights the close bond the photographer forged with his contemporaries – Henri Cartier-Bresson (on exhibit in an adjoining gallery), Bruce Davidson, Louis Faurer, and Josef Koudelka. A 61-plate monograph entitled Ickovic, published in conjunction with the museum exhibition, is available for purchase from the gallery. For information, go to: https://www.robertkleingallery.com/
“Two Chambermaids, Prague” © Paul Ickovic, courtesy Robert Klein Gallery, Boston.
“Meditation No. 16” 2020, by Debe Arlook, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
Griffin Museum at Lafayette City Center Passageway, Downtown Crossing – Last chance, on view through June 9th, 2021! In the group exhibition Digits: A Parallel Universe, eleven photographers use a range of digital manipulations to create exciting explorations of altered states, times or dimensions: Debe Arlook (above), Diana Cheren Nygren, Najee Dorsey, Cathy Cone, Miren Etcheverry, Dennis Geller, Bill Gore, Marcy Juran, Deborah Kaplan, Lisa Ryan and Gordon Saperia.
To read our review: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/digits-a-parallel-universe-at-griffin-museum-satellite-in-lafayette-city-center-boston/
For more information, go to: https://griffinmuseum.org/show/digits-parallel-universe/
“Baracudas” by Meryl Meisler, courtesy of the artist and Griffin Museum of Photography.
Next at Griffin Lafayette City Center – In the summer group show Splash, thirty-nine photographers offer their creative interpretations on the watery theme: Federica Armstrong, Jan Arrigo, Gary Beeber, Meg Birnbaum, Norm Borden, Sally Bousquet, Lora Brody, Joy Bush, Richard Alan Cohen, L. Aviva Diamond, Alex Djordjevic, Steven Edson, Miren Etcheverry, Kev Filmore, Jennifer Greenburg, Maureen Halderman, Carol Isaak, Leslie Jean-Bart, Roger Carl Johanson, Susan Lapides, Susan Lirakis, Joyce P. Lopez, Bruce Magnuson, Landry Major, Carol Mathieson, Meryl Meisler (above), Olga Merrill, Judith Montminy, Rita Nannini, Richard O’Neill, Jaye Phillips, Ann Rosen, Susan Rosenberg Jones, Russ Rowland, Sarah Schorr, Vicky Stromee, Neelakantan Sunder, Kiyomi Yatsuhashi and Dianne Yudelson. On view from June 23rd – August 29th, there will be an actual, in-person closing reception on Sunday, August 29th, 2021 from 4:00 – 7:00 pm.
For information, go to: https://griffinmuseum.org/show/splash/
A Yellow Rose Project
Faye G. Jo and James Stone Gallery, Boston University – A Yellow Rose project is a collaborative photographic effort to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th amendment, giving women the right to vote. Photographers Frances Jakubek and Meg Griffiths invited over one hundred women photographers to respond to the anniversary and reflect on the strength and resiliency of women. A gallery exhibit will be open to members of the Boston University community, but an ongoing slideshow will be featured in the gallery’s main window, along with an online component. On view through September 15th, 2021.
For more information: http://www.bu.edu/art/a-yellow-rose-project/
CAMBRIDGE
Installation view of PRC pop-up exhibition Field of Vision at the CambridgeSide Galleria 2nd Floor in Cambridge, MA (photo courtesy Suzanne Révy).
Photographic Resource Center (PRC) Pop-Up Gallery at CambridgeSide Galleria – The group exhibit Field of Vision, curated by Jessica Burko, PRC Program Manager and Curator, honors the New England landscape with photographs by Deborah Kaplan, Steven Keirstead, Bruce Myren, Anne Randolph and Suzanne Révy. On view at the CambridgeSide Galleria on the 2nd Floor through June 26th, 2021, an online reception is planned for Tuesday, June 8th at 6:30pm, register here.
Gallery hours and more information, go to: https://www.prcboston.org/field-of-vision/
THE BURBS
“Edge of a Moment” by Meryl McMaster, courtesy of the artist and the Griffin Museum of Photography.
Griffin Museum, Winchester, MA – Spirit: Focus on Indigenous Art, Artists and Issues features a broad scope of photographic styles which reflect the complexities of indigenous culture. The exhibit includes photographs by Tonita Cervantes, Jeremy Dennis, Pat Kane, Meryl McMaster, Shelley Niro, Kali Spitzer & Bubzee, Will Wilson, Kilii Yuyan and Donna Garcia, who curated the exhibition. Three additional shows, At the Edge of the Fens by Jacqueline Waters, Now is Always by Vaune Trachtman and Our Mothers’ Gardens by Alayna Pernell will also be on view through July 9th, 2021. On Thursday, June 10th, 2021 at 7:00pm EDT, there will be an online “Artists and Issues” Artist Reception.
For more information, event registration or to make a reservation to visit: https://griffinmuseum.org
From last year, an installation view of Photoville’s 8th edition of The FENCE in front of the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, MA. (Photographed by Suzanne Révy)
Griffin Museum of Photography, Photoville’s 9th Edition of the Fence, Winchester, MA – Get your walking shoes, because it looks like we will be blessed with yet another outdoor exhibition in the area. In collaboration with the Griffin, Photoville’s The FENCE returns to downtown Winchester in mid-June to coincide with Winchester Porchfest and the Farmer’s Market. The FENCE is an annual juried competition and the exhibit includes a national and regional selection of photographers, all within walking distance of the Griffin Museum. On view from June 12th through September 6th, 2021.
For more information: https://griffinmuseum.org/9th-edition-of-the-fence-2021-winchester/
“Present Day Refugee with Dormitory Ship ‘Flotel Europa'” 1995 by Shimon Attie from the series Portraits of Exile, courtesy of the deCordova Museum Scukpture Park and Museum, gift of Cathy England.
deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, Lincoln, MA – Two new shows incorporate photography among other media. What We Do In The Shadows features prints and photographs that explore places hidden in shadows where systems or governments can conceal something sinister, and artists seek to reveal it . The exhibit includes local luminaries like Lou Jones, Barbara Norfleet and Laura McPhee. A second show, Sonya Clark: Heaven Bound includes six large scale vinyl print portraits of former enslaved Americans, such as Frederick Douglas and Sojourner Truth, among others. On view through September 12, 2021.
For more information and to make reservations: https://thetrustees.org/program/decordova-exhibtions/
ROAD TRIP!
“Fly Away” from the series Dimensions by Bill Gore, courtesy of the artist and RICPA, Providence.
Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts (RICPA), Providence, RI – We were delighted to be jurors for “A New Leaf.” The exhibition reflects our growing optimism as brighter, warmer days and an end to the pandemic come into view. We were drawn to imagery that expresses a sense of connection, renewal, and hope. Some selections are joyful declarations while others are muted and ephemeral. Whether elegantly descriptive or interpretive, comprised of single or multiple frames, rendered in black and white or color, we chose works that we felt possess a strong vision. On view through June 11th, 2021.
To view highlights from the show go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/a-new-leaf-group-exhibition-at-rhode-island-center-for-photographic-arts-in-providence-ri/
“Nasturtium Blossoms” © Robert Buelteman, Jr. Chromogenic Development Print 96″ x 42″ x 0″ courtesy of the artist and the Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts.
Next at RICPA – Photography without a Lens, juried by Ann Jastrab from the Center for Photographic Art in Carmel, CA. This show was postponed from last year and includes a variety of lo-fi, vintage, digital scans and camera-less images. On view from June 7th – July 9th, 2021.
For more information: https://www.riphotocenter.org
“Maya Williams” by Séan Alonzo Harris from the exhibit The Space Between courtesy of the artist and Cove Street Arts.
Cove Street Arts, Portland, ME – Inspired by the writings of Ralph Ellison, The Space Between features street pictures, urban landscapes and studio portraits by Séan Alonzo Harris made over the past five years in Portland, Maine. Curated by Bruce Brown, Harris brings attention to overlooked communities in an effort to make the varied and full humanity of his subjects visible and endow each with agency. On view through June 26th, 2021.
For more information: https://www.covestreetarts.com/exhibitions-1/thespacebetween
From the show Nor’east by SB Walker, courtesy of the artist and the Center for Maine Contemporary Art.
Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Rockland, ME – Since 2014, photographer SB Walker traveled hundreds of thousands of miles around the state of Maine to document the many corners of the this northeastern state including farms, harbors and people at play, work and worship in Nor’east, currently on view through September 12th, 2021.
For more information: https://cmcanow.org/event/sb-walker-noreast/
“American Indian with Dot on Face” 2001 by Annu Palakannathu Matthew from the Indian in India series, courtesy of the artist, sepiaEYE (NYC) and the Shelburne Museum.
Shelburne Museum, Shelburne, VT – New England Now: People is the second exhibition in a new biennial series featuring regional artists. This multi-media exhibition explores the cultures and traditions among diverse communities in contemporary New England, and includes the photographs of Melonie Bennett, Evie Lovett, Erik Williams and Annu Palakannathu Mathew (above) on view from June 26th through October 17th, 2021. For more information: https://shelburnemuseum.org/exhibition/new-england-now-people/
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