Photo by Jacob Drabik

The Lens

The Lens is the FotoFocus editorial platform, highlighting our programming and featuring in-depth conversations on photography and the moving image drawn from perspectives and insights in our community, throughout our region, and around the globe.


Zora J Murff On the Intersections of Art and Blackness in America

Posted on May 4, 2021

Artist Zora J Murff's works are investigations: of history, of systems, and of Black spaces. Read our conversation here, then tune in May 6 to hear his Lens Mix conversation.

An Assistant Professor of Art at the University of Arkansas, Zora J Murff received his MFA from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and holds a BS in Psychology from Iowa State University. Merging his educational experiences, Murff uses his practice to highlight intersections between various social systems and art.

Continue reading Zora J Murff On the Intersections of Art and Blackness in America

Aperture’s Incoming Executive Director Sarah Meister On Reimagining Photography’s History and Future

Posted on May 3, 2021

The outgoing MoMA photography curator talks picking up the invitation to interrogate the historical record, and the importance of asking why, in advance of her May 6 Lens Mix talk.

Right as she takes the helm of Aperture Foundation, longtime MoMA Photography Curator Sarah Meister joins artist Zora J Murff and FotoFocus Artistic Director and Curator Kevin Moore for a (virtual) Lens Mix conversation on May 6.

Here, we discuss what equity looks like in the... Continue reading Aperture’s Incoming Executive Director Sarah Meister On Reimagining Photography’s History and Future


SECOND SCREENS: Foodie Edition Goes Sweet with “Willy Wonka” and Sleepy Bee Café

Posted on April 28, 2021

What better way to watch a chocolate river than while eating than a chocolatey shmear? Get the recipe and other details here.

A do-it-mostly-yourself take on a film festival for the stay-at-home era, SECOND SCREENS: Foodie Edition pairs a classic, widely available film with interactive—and edible!—elements for a dinner-and-a-movie experience done on your time.

There's always room for dessert. And SECOND SCREENS: Foodie Edition heeds the sugary call with... Continue reading SECOND SCREENS: Foodie Edition Goes Sweet with “Willy Wonka” and Sleepy Bee Café


The Fabric of our Lives

Posted on April 15, 2021

Opening May 15, Weston Art Gallery exhibits Material Message: Photographs of Fabric.

We’re surrounded by it, but we hardly give it a second thought: Fabric literally covers our bodies and homes, and it can change, represent, and even help create our identities. To explore this relationship, the Weston Art Gallery is showing photographs and other works, curated by Mount Vernon–based photographer Marcella Hackbardt, beginning May 15. The exhibition title, Material Message, hints at the show’s thesis: That fabric communicates meaning in... Continue reading The Fabric of our Lives


Art Critic and Historian Hal Foster Talks States of Emergency and Structural Change

Posted on April 5, 2021

Society, you may have noticed, has seemed a bit unhinged of late. On Saturday, April 10, artist John Miller and art critic and historian Hal Foster will talk with FotoFocus Artistic Director and Curator Kevin Moore about the question of finding meaning and sense as the futures of art, society, and politics seem to unfold in increasingly erratic ways.

Art critic and historian Hal Foster is the author of numerous books, including, most recently, What Comes After Farce? Art and Criticism at a Time of Debacle (Verso, 2020) and... Continue reading Art Critic and Historian Hal Foster Talks States of Emergency and Structural Change