The Friends of the Jamaica Plain Branch of the Boston Public Library in partnership with Uforge are pleased to announce a new exhibition as part of their rotating art program. After soliciting proposals from a range of local artists, a selection committee comprised of community members and BPL staff have chosen six exceptional artists to fill its gallery space over the course of 2018. This summer will showcase the work of Jamaica Plain-based documentary photographer Joni Lohr.
For 50 years, Lohr has been turning her camera towards the world around her, capturing the energy of live musical performances, the camaraderie between friends, the ghosts of abandoned buildings, and the spontaneity of urban life. For her, art is about storytelling, and she uses photography to communicate infinite narratives for viewers to interpret. The works on view at the JP Branch Library offer a range of stories, all printed in soft tones of black and white, with some familiar Boston-area locations and some ambiguous. The subjects in her photographs laugh, play, wait, walk, talk, teach, and observe, some engaging with one another and others seemingly isolated from the world around them. Together the exhibition acts as a portrait of city life as viewed through Lohr’s eyes, one of interaction and introspection, of starts and stops, and incredible variety.
Joni Lohr: Unfinished Stories - A Social Documentary is on view from July 6 through August 31, 2018, with a public reception to be held on Thursday, July 12, 5:30-7:30 PM. The library is open Monday-Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, and Friday-Saturday 9-5 (closed Sundays). The exhibition space is located on the lower level.
This program is supported in part by a grant from the Boston Cultural Council, a local agency which is funded by the Mass Cultural Council, and administered by the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture.