By Elin Spring and Suzanne Révy
At long last, New England is in exuberant bloom. Venturing out is fun again and, happily, there are lots of sights to see. Here are our picks for this month’s most intriguing photography exhibits and events in and around Boston, throughout the suburbs and across New England. As always, we arrange our selections geographically for your planning convenience and we invite you to re-visit throughout June for timely updates.
SOWA – Boston’s South End Arts District
“Hotel Pillows” by Greg Heins from the show More and More and Then Some, courtesy of the artist and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.
Gallery Kayafas – In his solo show More and more and then some (title from a Nina Simone song), Greg Heins draws on the cacophony of mundane surroundings to extract visual patterns and relationships within and between photographs. Against the backdrop of a chaotic world, Heins’ gentle repetitions guide viewers toward the solace of order while offering sparks of delight in unexpected discoveries. In the Alcove, Zia Ayub presents his atmospheric photographs of the natural world. LAST CHANCE! On view through June 10th, 2023, there will be a First Friday Reception with the artists on June 2nd from 5:30 – 8:00pm.
For our review of these exhibits, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/jon-henry-at-abakus-projects-greg-heins-and-zia-ayub-at-gallery-kayafas-michael-grecco-at-anderson-yezerski-gallery-in-boston-ma/
For more information, go to: https://www.gallerykayafas.com/
“Sin título (Momia 1)” / “Untitled (Mummy 1)” by Juan Jose Barboza-Gubo & Andrew Mroczek, courtesy of the artists and Gallery Kayafas, Boston.
Coming next to Gallery Kayafas, a collaborative body of work made in Peru by Juan Jose Barboza-Gubo and Andrew Mroczek entitled Momias de los Cóndores (Mummies of The Condors), on view from June 16th – July 22nd, 2023.
“Martha Davis from the band The Motels” by Michael Grecco, 1982, from the show Days of Punk, courtesy of the artist and the Anderson Yezerski Gallery, Boston.
Anderson Yezerski Gallery – Michael Grecco’s Days of Punk features his dynamic, gritty pictures of the punk music scene’s manic energy and culture-shocking behavior as it hit the ground in Boston & NYC in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. On view through June 19th, 2023.
To read our review of Days of Punk, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/jon-henry-at-abakus-projects-greg-heins-and-zia-ayub-at-gallery-kayafas-michael-grecco-at-anderson-yezerski-gallery-in-boston-ma/
From the series and book MONEYGAME by Elizabeth Waterman, courtesy of the artist and Anderson Yezerski Gallery, Boston.
Coming next to Anderson Yezerski Gallery is Elizabeth Waterman’s MONEYGAME, her collaborative bird’s-eye view and humanizing tribute to the women who work at strip clubs in major cities across America. On view from June 23rd – July 29th, 2023, there will be an Opening Reception on Friday, June 23rd from 5:00 – 8:00pm.
For more information, go to: https://andersonyezerski.com/
“@therachlindsay” 2020 from the series #influenced by Laura Beth Reese, courtesy of the artist and Abakus Projects, Boston.
Abakus Projects – In her solo show #influenced, Laura Beth Reese creates photo collages that exploit the glitz and glam of social media influencers to critique the ways in which people are willing to commodify themselves for attention while corporations simultaneously leverage their own marketing muscle. On view from June 2nd – June 30th, 2023, there will be an Opening Reception with the artist on First Friday, June 2nd from 6:00 – 8:30pm.
For more information, go to: https://www.abakusprojects.com/
BOSTON PROPER
EDYTHE AND ANDREW KISSING ON TOP OF TAXIS, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, 2008, BY RODNEY SMITH, COURTESY OF ROBERT KLEIN GALLERY, BOSTON.
Robert Klein Gallery – The sophisticated, stylish and witty fashion photography of the late Rodney Smith is featured in the solo show A Leap of Faith and in a new Getty publication of the same name. An uplifting treat, on view through June 30th, 2023.
To read our review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/rodney-smith-a-leap-of-faith-exhibit-at-robert-klein-gallery-boston-and-j-paul-getty-museum-book/
For more information, go to: https://www.robertkleingallery.com/
“Violet as Ophelia” from the series Secretly Pretty by Sean Black, courtesy of the artist and Leica Gallery Boston.
Leica Gallery Boston – Two solo shows celebrate Pride Month: Sean Black’s Secretly Pretty and The Gay Essay, Anthony Friedkin’s photojournalistic homage to the Gay Liberation Movement in Los Angeles and San Francisco between 1969-1973. On view through June 25th, 2023.
For more information, go to: https://www.instagram.com/leicagalleryboston/
“Michelle, The C’est La Vie Club, North Hollywood, CA” 1972 from The Gay Essay by Anthony Friedkin, courtesy of the artist and Leica Gallery Boston.
“Trinity Church, Summer St.” 1872 Albumen Photograph by James Wallace Black (1825-1896), from the exhibit Revisiting the Ruins: The Great Boston Fire of 1872, reprinted with permission of the Boston Athenaeum.
Boston Athenaeum – Revisiting the Ruins: The Great Boston Fire of 1872, a lively multi-media exhibit featuring exquisite albumen prints and stereographs that make history come alive, on view through July 29th, 2023.
To read our review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/revisiting-the-ruins-the-great-boston-fire-of-1872-at-boston-athenaeum-and-painted-tintypes-photography-for-the-people-at-museum-of-fine-arts-boston/
For more information, go to: https://bostonathenaeum.org/visit/exhibitions/https-www-bostonathenaeum-org-visit-exhibitions-upcoming-exhibitions-greatfire/
“Civil War Soldier and his Family” by an unknown photographer, 1860’s, from the John and Olivia Parker Collection, installation photograph by Suzanne Révy.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston – In the Herb Ritts Gallery, Painted Tintypes: Photography for the People gathers a captivating and diverse selection of this affordable, personalized and decoratively framed form of American portraiture, drawn from both private and MFA collections, on view through October 15th, 2023. In the Frances Vrachos Gallery / Mary Stamas Gallery, Jess Dugan: Coupled features portraits of LGBTQ couples created using a rare and massive Polaroid camera in the years after the 2004 legalization of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, on view through June 19th, 2023.
For our review of Painted Tintypes, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/revisiting-the-ruins-the-great-boston-fire-of-1872-at-boston-athenaeum-and-painted-tintypes-photography-for-the-people-at-museum-of-fine-arts-boston/
For more information on Painted Tintypes, go to: https://www.mfa.org/exhibition/painted-tintypes-photography-for-the-people
For information on Jess T. Dugan, go to: https://www.mfa.org/exhibition/jess-t-dugan-coupled
Jess T. Dugan “Ingrid and Okolo” (detail), 2006-8. Photograph, dye diffusion print (Polaroid). Gift of the artist. ©Jess T. Dugan. Courtesy of MFA, Boston.
“Laceleaf, Japanese Maple” 2022, from the exhibit Still Lives: Plants of the Arnold Arboretum Close Up and Far Away, by Vaughn Sills, courtesy of the artist.
Hunnewell Exhibition Space, Arnold Arboretum – The Arnold Arboretum has long been a nourishing repository for native and exotic plants and trees, cherished by the many visitors it welcomes year round. For the past few years, photographer Vaughn Sills has been gifted cuttings from its native and non-native collections. By arranging the flora in studio settings depicting far-off land and seascapes, Sills visually alludes to the emotional displacement and search for belonging experienced by immigrants and refugees. On view through June 23rd, 2023.
For directions and hours, go to: https://arboretum.harvard.edu/art_shows/still-lives-plants-of-the-arnold-arboretum-close-up-and-far-away/
“Headlights” from the series Devil’s Swamp by Alexa Cushing, courtesy of the artist and Panopticon Gallery, Boston.
Panopticon Gallery – The two-person exhibit By Your Window features imagery from Alexa Cushing’s series Devil’s Swamp, mining the mystery and mythology of native hallowed ground in southeastern Massachusetts and two of Connor Noll’s series, exploring themes of nostalgia, mystery and narrative. On view through July 31st, 2023, there will be a Reception with the artists on Friday, June 9th from 6:00 – 8:00pm.
For more information, go to: https://www.panopticongallery.com/
“House on the cul-de-sac” by Connor Noll, courtesy of the artist and Panopticon Gallery, Boston.
CAMBRIDGE
“Villagers wearing a lion dance costume for two performers, Huozhuang Village, Henan Province” 2018, from the series Shehuo: Community Fire by Jhang Xiao, courtesy of the artist and Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology at Harvard University.
Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology at Harvard University – Photographer Zhang Xiao examines the effects of modernization on Chinese culture through the transformation of Shehuo: Community Fire, a traditional spring festival held in rural northern China that coincides with the New Year. Xiao, the 11th recipient of the Peabody Museum’s Robert Gardner Fellowship in Photography, documents the festivities and its commercialization in 2007, and then a decade later in 2017, with vivid and thought-provoking imagery. Accompanied by a book and additional programming, this English/ Chinese bilingual exhibit is on view through April 14th, 2024,
For more information about the exhibit and associated programming, go to: https://peabody.harvard.edu/shehuo-community-fire
“Wonder” by Janelle Lynch from the series Another Way of Looking at Love, courtesy of the artist, Photographic Resource Center and Flowers Gallery, London.
Photographic Resource Center (PRC) at Lesley University – In a long-awaited return to the VanDernoot Gallery on the Lesley University campus, the PRC is hosting Janelle Lynch’s acclaimed Another Way of Looking at Love. This contemplative series combines the stunning sensuality of an 8″x 10″ view camera with Lynch’s inspired vision that our shared “organic and spiritual essence” with the natural world confers an “elemental sameness that unites us and transcends our apparent differences.” LAST CHANCE! On view through June 11th, 2023.
To read our review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/janelle-lynch-another-way-of-looking-at-love-exhibit-and-lecture-at-prc-boston-ma/
For more information, go to: https://www.prcboston.org/janelle-lynch-another-way-of-looking-at-love/
THE BURBS
“Pandemic Frenzy, 2020 after Anna and Bernard Bloom Kitchen Frenzy, 1986” by Colleen Mullins from the series Rolls and Tubes, courtesy of the artist and the Griffin Museum of Photography.
Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester – In the Griffin Atelier Gallery, a collective of four women, Colleen Mullins, Jenny Sampson, Nicole White and Christy McDonald noticed the commodification of the commonplace when there were shortages of goods such as flour, hair dye and toilet paper at the start of the pandemic. This was the genesis of Rolls and Tubes, in which each photographer interprets and recreates works from the history of the medium using toilet paper.
In the Griffin Gallery, Fern Nesson presents studies of the infinite and ongoing presence of matter and energy in an exhibit referencing relativity in E=mc² all on view from June 1st – July 9th, 2023 with a reception planned for Friday, June 2nd from 6:00 – 8:00pm.
The main gallery will rotate the PhotoSynthesis and Atelier student exhibitions during the month of June and early July.
For more information and related programming go to: https://griffinmuseum.org
“Dimensionism” by Fern Nesson, courtesy of the artist, Beacon Gallery, Boston and the Griffin Museum of Photography.
Feature Image: “Jebron Felder” by Zun Lee from the series Father Figure and the exhibition As We Rise: Photography from the Black Atlantic, courtesy of the artist and the Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA.
Peabody Essex Museum, Salem – Organized by the Aperture Foundation, As We Rise: Photography from the Black Atlantic is drawn from Dr. Kenneth Montague’s Wedge Collection in Toronto, which is dedicated to artists of African descent. Considering the myriad Black experience with an emphasis on community, identity and power, the exhibit features over one hundred works by artists such as Zun Lee (above), Deanna Lawson, Carrie Mae Weems and Jamel Shabazz. On view from June 17th through December 31st, 2023.
For more information: https://www.pem.org
“Untitled” by Tsar Fedorsky, 2020, from series The Quarry Project, courtesy of the artist and the Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester, MA.
Cape Ann Museum, Gloucester – Working with freelance photographer and former Boston Globe reporter, David Arnold, the museum presents QuarryArt featuring the work of nine regional photographers who have explored Cape Ann’s many striking quarries. Participating photographers are Tsar Fedorsky, Albert Glazier, Paul Cary Goldberg, Skip Montello, Olivia Parker, Martin Ray, Katherine Richmond, Steve Rosenthal and Constance Vallis. Opening with a celebration day with the artists on June 10th, the show will be on view through July 30th, 2023.
For more information on related programming: https://www.capeannmuseum.org/exhibitions/quarry-art/
Americas (Triptych) Miss Girl; Kym, Lyle & Crinoline; Miss America” by © Lyle Ashton Harris, 1987-8, gelatin silver prints, Edition 5/6, courtesy of Jeanne Greenburg Rohatyn,; the artist; LGDR, New York and the Rose Art Museum at Brandies University, Waltham, MA.
Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University, Waltham – In his first solo show in New England in more than two decades, Lyle Ashton Harris’ Our First and Last Love presents both celebrated and lesser known bodies of work in photography and installation to critically probe ideas around self-portraiture. Ashton Harris broadly engages in political dialog while reveling in tenderness toward his own communities and personal struggles or sorrows. On view through July 2nd, 2023.
To read our review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/lyle-ashton-harris-our-first-and-last-love-at-rose-art-museum-at-brandeis-university/
For more information: https://www.brandeis.edu/rose/exhibitions/2023/lyle-ashton-harris.html
“Picking Corn” by Ellen Harasimowicz from the series Living Like Grass courtesy of the artist.
Three Stones Gallery, Concord – Documentary photographer Ellen Harasimowicz’ sensitive narrative of the 350 year-old Willard Farm in Still River, MA examines its current residents and operation in the face of the demise of family farming in America. There will be an artist talk on June 8th at 6:30pm, and the show is on view through June 18th, 2023.
For more information, go to: https://www.threestonesgallery.com/
“Fawzia, Ramlet Al Bayda, Beirut, Lebanon (#1)” by Rania Matar, 2022, from the series Where Do I Go? courtesy of the artist, Robert Klein Gallery, Boston and the Fitchburg Art Museum.
Fitchburg Art Museum (FAM), Fitchburg – Rania Matar: Oceans at My Door celebrates the museum’s acquisition of Matar’s She portfolio. The exhibit includes new work from her more recent series, Where Do I Go? an investigation of Lebanese women navigating the crossroads of a country in crisis. On view through August 3rd, 2023.
To read our review: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/rania-matar-oceans-at-my-door-at-fitchburg-art-museum-ma/
For more information: https://fitchburgartmuseum.org/rania-matar-oceans-at-my-door/
Cindy Sherman (US American, b. 1954), Untitled (Cosmo cover girl), 1990, chromogenic print, 17” x 11”. Gift of Judy Goldman, 2021.122
Also at FAM – In the Eye of the Beholder considers the ways in which photographers have used the “gendered gaze” across the early 20th and 21st centuries. The group exhibit highlights FAM favorites along with recent acquisitions—including work from Gertrude Kasebier, Cindy Sherman (above), and Yasumasa Morimura. On view through September 10th, 2023.
For more information: https://fitchburgartmuseum.org/moving-objectsstrongemin-the-eye-of-the-beholder-gender-through-the-camera-lens-em-strongmoving-objects/
“Late Noon Sun CScape” from The Dune Shacks of Provincetown (Schiffer Publishing, 2022) by Jane Paradise, courtesy of the artist, Alden Gallery, Provincetown and Galatea Fine Art, Boston.
Cape Cod Museum of Art, Dennis – Photographer Jane Paradise’s solo exhibition accompanies the recent publication of her meditative and inspiring book, The Dune Shacks of Provincetown (Schiffer Publishing, 2022). On view through July 30th, 2023.
To read our book review, go to: https://www.whatwillyouremember.com/book-review-sarah-malakoff-personal-history-and-jane-paradise-the-dune-shacks-of-provincetown/
For more information, go to: https://www.ccmoa.org/dune-shacks
From the series AI is the camera for what isn’t by John Huet, courtesy of the artist and the Workspace Gallery at Bob Korn Imaging.
Workspace Gallery at Bob Korn Imaging, Eastham – Photographer John Huet presents a series of images made utilizing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in his solo exhibit, Photography is the Camera For What Is, AI is the Camera For What Isn’t. LAST CHANCE! on view through June 7th, 2023.
For more information: https://bobkornimaging.com/john-huet-ai-is-the-camera-for-what-isnt/
ROAD TRIP!
Rhode Island
The Performative Self-Portrait with work by Martine Gutierrez (left) and Juliana Huxtable (right) at the RISD Museum, installation picture by Suzanne Révy.
RISD Museum, Providence – The Performative Self-Portrait considers the ways artists use self-portraiture to enact the self, question history, and articulate identity. Photographs in the exhibition range from the 1930’s to new acquisitions displayed for the first time, on view through November 12th, 2023.
For more information, go to: https://risdmuseum.org/exhibitions-events/exhibitions/performative-self-portrait
Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts, Providence- presents Margaret LeJeaune’s Thirteen Hours to Fall in a solo show featuring photography and installation alongside a group exhibition, Landscapes, Great and Small: An update for the 21st Century with works by Richard Alan Cohen, Linda Megathlin, Lisa Redburn and Suzanne Révy. LAST CHANCE! Both shows are on view through June 9th, 2023.
For more information: https://www.riphotocenter.org
Connecticut
“J.P. Ball Studio, 1867 Douglass (Lessons of the Hour)” by Isaac Julien, 2019, framed archival pigment print mounted on aluminum. The Douglas Tracy Smith and Dorothy Potter Smith Fund. Courtesy of the artist, Victoria Miro, and Jessica Silverman, San Francisco and the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, CT.
Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford – I Am Seen… Therefore, I Am features Isaac Julien’s immersive film exploring Frederick Douglass’ reflections on image making. C0-curated by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Sarah Elizabeth Lewis, the exhibit brings together rare nineteenth century Daguerrotypes that commemorate the African American photographers of Douglass’ day and examine his relationship to Hartford and his legacy for social justice. On view through September 24th, 2023.
For more information and programming go to: https://www.thewadsworth.org/explore/upcoming-exhibitions/iamseen/
New Hampshire
“North Africa, Bizerte, Loading LST’s for Italy” by Margaret Bourke White, from the portfolio World War II, Army Service Forces, no, 7, 1944, gelatin silver print, Gift of Jane and Raphael Bernstein; 2020.46.1.7. © Getty Images, courtesy of the Hood Museum.
Hood Museum, Dartmouth College, Hanover – Known for making the photograph that graced the first cover of Life Magazine, Margaret Bourke White spent her career documenting industry, poverty and wars of the 20th century. Margaret Bourke White: World War II and Life Magazine features a selection of prints from a portfolio made near the end of the war. On view through September 30th, 2023.
For more information: https://hoodmuseum.dartmouth.edu/explore/exhibitions/margaret-bourke-white-world-war-ii-and-life-magazine
Maine
“Untitled (Two women walking on the beach with a dog, Somalia)” by Todd Webb. (American, 1905-2000), 1958. Archival pigment print. 20×20 inches (image). 22×22 inches (sheet). © Todd Webb Archive. L2020.85.81.
Portland Museum of Art, Portland – Commissioned by the United Nations Office of Information to document emerging industries, technology and life in nine African countries, photographer Todd Webb spent five months there in 1958 amassing nearly two-thousand negatives. It was a critical moment when independence and colonialism were intertwined, but the pictures were for the most part never seen. Outside the Frame: Todd Webb in Africa considers the use of the colonial camera, agency, and the racial and economic privileges of the western world, then and now. What can we learn from the uncomfortable uses of photographic imaging in understanding history? On view through June 18th, 2023.
For information, go to: https://www.portlandmuseum.org/toddwebb
“Old Man and Deanna” by Joyce Tenneson 1986, Portland Museum of Art, Maine. Gift of the artist for the Ernst Haas Memorial Collection, 1998.16. Image courtesy Luc Demers. © Joyce Tenneson
Opening later this month at the Portland Museum of Art – Drawn to Light features work by many of the photographers who taught at the Maine Media Workshops from the early 1970’s to the present, such as Kate Carter, Dick Durrance, Ernst Haas, Mary Ellen Mark, Craig Stevens, and Joyce Tenneson (photo above). On view from June 16th – September 10th, 2023.
For more information and related programming: https://www.portlandmuseum.org/drawn-to-the-light
“Portrait of Lotte Lenya, 1930” by Lotte Jacobi, from the Steve and Judy Halpert Collection, courtesy of the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts, Portland, ME.
Maine Museum of Photographic Arts (MMPA Gallery), Portland – An assortment of stunning images from The Steve & Judy Halpert Collection has been curated by Jan Pieter von Voorst van Beest to reflect its focus on the human condition and also on Maine, home to the collectors. LAST CHANCE! On view through June 10th, 2023.
For more information on the exhibit and associated programming, go to: https://www.mainemuseumofphotographicarts.org/halpertcollection
“Disrobing” by Lynn Karlin, 2023, courtesy of the artist and the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts, Portland, ME.
Later this month at the Maine Museum of Photographic Arts (MMPA Gallery) – Decoding the Domestic features work by fourteen artists who are inspired by their personal surroundings including Laurie Semivan, Lynn Karlin (photo above), Caroline Savage, Jessica Burko, Joyce Tenneson, Andrew O’Brien, Paul Rider, Carol Eisenberg, Gail Skudera, Claire Seidl, Deb Whitney, Candace diCarlo, and Sara Stites. Opening with a Reception from 5:00 – 7:00pm on June 16th, the show is on view through August 5th, 2023.
For more information: https://www.mainemuseumofphotographicarts.org/decoding-the-domestic
From the series and book Breathe in Water by Sue Michlovitz, courtesy of the artist and Maine Jewish Museum, Portland.
Maine Jewish Museum, Portland – Sue Michlovitz’s solo exhibit and newly published book Breathe in Water investigates water in its endlessly fascinating forms, visually conveying the paradox of its life-sustaining and life-threatening powers. On view from June 29th – August 25th, 2023, there will be an Opening Reception with the artist on Thursday, June 29th from 5:00 – 7:00pm.
For more information, go to: https://mainejewishmuseum.org/exhibits/breathe-in-water/
“Two Queens, One Blonde, One Brunette, COYOTE Hookers Masquerade Ball,
CopaCabana, NY, NY, February 14, 1977″ from the Nightlife NYC 1977-2023 series by Meryl Meisler, courtesy of the artist and Clamp, NYC.
Zillman Art Museum at University of Maine, Bangor – Photographer Meryl Meisler rocks two solo shows, Nightlife NYC, 1977-2023 and ’70s Suburban Sensibilities, Friends & Family which share a sensational dramatic vibe. In contrasty B&W documentary photographs, Meisler celebrates both private and public exuberance. On view through August 19th, 2023 for Suburban Sensibilities and through September 2nd, 2023 for Nightlife NYC.
For information, go to: https://zam.umaine.edu/exhibitions/
Vermont
“Portage” by Vaune Trachtaman, from the Roaming series, courtesy of the artist and the Vermont Center for Photography, Brattleboro, VT.
Vermont Center for Photography, Brattleboro – The Art of Handmade Photography juried by Dale Rio features the work of thirty-four photographers including Emily Belz, Sally Chapman, Beverley Conway, Tomiko Jones, Fruma Markowitz and Vaune Trachtman (above) among many others. On view through July 2nd, 2023.
For more information: https://vcphoto.org
Cathy Come “Garden Manuscript” from the series A cappella Crack courtesy of the artist and Big Town Gallery, Rochester, Vermont.
Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro – The artist Cathy Cone modifies collected and found 19th century tintypes with gouache, watercolor, stamping, drawing or collage to create visual connections to the faces of the past in Cathy Cone: Portraits and Portals. LAST CHANCE! on view through June 11th, 2023.
For more information: https://www.brattleboromuseum.org/2022/12/15/cathy-cone-uncommon-denominator/
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