Dec 2019: Rust Belt Biennial and Exhibition

In the autumn of 2019 the Sordoni Gallery in Wilkes Barre, PA hosted an exhibition of the inaugural Rust Belt Biennial and some of my work from the Hard Coal project was included.

Biennial founders Niko J. Kallianiotis and Yoav Friedlander described the project here: “The first Rust Belt Biennial, hosted at the Sordoni Art Gallery at Wilkes University, is a celebration of photography featuring curated work of native Pennsylvanian and Rust Belt artists alongside prize winners and a top selection from the Biennial’s open call for work made in the region, juried by renowned photographer Andrew Moore.

“This land, its people, the pride and the struggles, the patina of the past and above all, the histories and memories ingrained in the soil across the region inspired us to form a new venue to celebrate and focus on photographic work from the Rust Belt Region. It is time to start a new dialogue about the state of photography and it’s social, cultural and political effects in our society; it is time to give back to the photographic community but also the region.”

I was honored to be included in this exhibition since my Hard Coal project is so important to me.

Respected photography magazine Lenscratch featured an article on the Rust Belt Biennial and included my photograph of anthracite miner Farmer Bob. Photography blog Ain’t Bad also had a feature