“In an era of troubling division, this exhibition encourages connection,” said Cathy Mayhugh, director of exhibitions at the Fitton Center. “Responding to the 2024 FotoFocus Biennial theme — ‘backstories’ ― each selected artist spent time in their assigned neighborhoods this spring and summer, photographing and recording glimpses of how and where we live, work and play.”
Sharing the stories they captured, the artists used film and digital processes, video, photo transfer, in-camera double exposure, wide-angle lens, and drone footage as well as a 3-D installation.
“They did it in distinct and universal ways, domestically, socially, and communally. Their work reflects both the individual personalities of each artist and each neighborhood, but also illustrates many common bonds shared across the city,” Mayhugh said.
The gallery opening celebration runs from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Oct. 19 and includes a 6 p.m. artists’ talk with three of the photographers whose work appears in the exhibition — Leslie Getz, Scott Kissell and Kent Krugh.
“We > Me” will remain on view through Jan. 3, 2025. Fitton Center galleries are free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays. The galleries also are open during select weekend hours when performances and other events occur in the building.
Concurrent to the “We > Me” FotoFocus opening celebration, young artists from the Hamilton City School District — elementary ages through advanced-placement high school students — will share artistic visions of their hometown in the Community Gallery.
Miami University’s Richard & Carole Cocks Art Museum will feature “Through Their Lens: Photographing Freedom Summer,” which will be on view through Dec. 14.
The exhibition approaches the story of Freedom Summer by focusing on those behind the lens as it shares their documentarians, individually and collectively, as the Richard and Carole Cocks Art Museum commemorates this pivotal time in the Civil Rights Movement.
Pyramid Hill Sculpture Park & Museum will showcase a series of three exhibitions, including “Stories of the Land,” “Meryl McMaster: Stories of the Infinite Sky” and “Jo Whaley: The Theater of Nature” as part of its 2024 FotoFocus Biennial project. The exhibitions will be on view through Dec. 22.
Using a variety of approaches and techniques, artists in “Stories of the Land” contemplate humanity’s deep relationship with nature and their place within it.
The 2024 Biennial FotoFocus, “Backstories” features 107 projects in 86 participating venues across Cincinnati, Dayton, Northern Kentucky and Columbus. The exhibition is a celebration of photography and lens-based art, held in October every two years. For a full schedule of exhibition locations, go to fotofocus.org/biennial.
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