Culture

Light Work, En Foco collaborate on photography exhibit promoting diversity

 

An upcoming exhibition in the Schine Student Center will spotlight the large role Latinos, Africans, Native and Asian Americans play in the world of photography.

‘Latinos, Native Americans, Africans and Asian Americans have all been involved with photography since the beginning of the medium,’ said Elizabeth Ferrer, director of BRIC Arts and curator for ‘En Foco/In Focus: Selected Works from the Permanent Collection.’

Presented by Light Work, the photography and digital media center at Syracuse University, ‘En Foco’ opens in the Robert S. Menschel Photography Gallery in room 303 of Schine on Sept. 1. The show is a joint effort between Light Work and En Foco, a nonprofit organization that supports and fosters the artistic efforts of U.S. residents of Latino, African and Asian heritages and Native peoples of the Americas and the Pacific. The show features 57 prints by 49 artists amongst 21 different ethnicities and nationalities, illustrating the organization’s mission to promote cultural diversity in the field of photography.

The featured photographs date from the 1970s to present day and aim to show a perspective of an underrepresented demographic, said Miriam Romais, En Foco’s executive director and editor. 



‘What’s unique about this collection is that it’s not a European-centric view of the art world,’ Romais said. ‘This collection becomes the information that is missing in textbooks about art, about our history.’

En Foco may host one or two panel discussions to help visitors connect with the art and gain a personal understanding of the collection, Romais said. Dates and locations for these discussions are yet to be determined.

‘Having the artwork up on the wall is wonderful, but the one-on-one interaction with the actual artists adds a whole other level for someone who might have questions about the background or story behind the photo,’ she said.

This will not be En Foco’s first exhibition that Light Work hosts at Syracuse University — the organization previously showed ‘Tracing Memory’ at Light Work in fall 2008.

Romais said that Light Work’s presence at SU is the main reason why En Foco decided to work with the university.

‘For many photographers Light Work is the Mecca,’ Romais said. ‘They not only cater to photographers, but communities and issues of diversity.’

En Foco’s artists approach photography with freedom and desires to reflect traditions, cultural histories and creative modes, said Jessica Reed, Light Work’s promotions coordinator. She said the exhibition’s message of multicultural education mirrors the importance that SU students place on celebrating ethnic differences.

Ilana Goldmeier, a sophomore photography major, is not sure if the exhibition will appeal to the entire student body, but she said that she would go because it relates to her major.

‘A certain amount (of students) will be interested just because some students like to go to exhibits in general, and some just like to see what the campus has to offer,’ Goldmeier said.

En Foco’s exhibition, reflecting three different decades of photography and the changes in the medium, will be valuable to students studying photography, art or art history, Ferrer said.

She said she hopes the show’s mission to celebrate diversity and strides in photography won’t be the last of its kind.

‘It had been growing for a long time, but it had really never been exhibited,’ she said. ‘Hopefully, this will lead to a publication or future exhibitions.’

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