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Exploring Light and Its Contrasts

Posted on May 10, 2019

On April 28th FotoFocus announced that in lieu of presenting the fifth FotoFocus Biennial, originally slated for October 2020, it pledged its Biennial budget to financially support the Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Dayton and Columbus, Ohio art communities during the coronavirus pandemic.

FotoFocus gave an emergency art grant in the amount of $800,000 to over 100 Participating Venues and Partners that were selected to present as part of the 2020 FotoFocus Biennial.

The next FotoFocus Biennial will take place in October 2022 with a new theme. The Program Week is scheduled for Friday, October 1 – Saturday, October 8, 2022.


FotoFocus announces the theme for the fifth iteration of the FotoFocus Biennial, America’s largest photography and lens-based art biennial. The 2020 theme, light&, explores light and its contrasts in relation to photography and the world at large.

The FotoFocus Biennial will activate museums, galleries, universities, and public spaces throughout Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Dayton and Columbus, Ohio in October 2020, with a concentrated week of programming to be held October 1–4, 2020. FotoFocus will welcome global artists, curators, critics, educators, and regional visitors to Cincinnati with exhibitions, talks, performances, screenings, and panel discussions all related to the theme.

“Light is a fundamental aspect of photography. Light implies a force of good, and it conjures hope, clarity, and rational thought,” says Kevin Moore, FotoFocus Artistic Director and Curator. “Exhibitors are asked to consider the phrase ‘light&’ with what comes after. We’re looking forward to seeing how venues interpret the theme.”

“This theme is a springboard for many different curatorial conversations spanning political, social, and historical themes,” says Mary Ellen Goeke, FotoFocus Executive Director. “As we launch the fifth iteration of the Biennial, it is engaging to see institutional leaders, artists, and our community interpret each Biennial theme.”

The Biennial has broken records with each iteration. The most recent, in 2018, welcomed 207,000 visitors, more than triple the first Biennial’s attendance in 2012.

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