Opening Program Schedule
The Biennial Opening Program (September 30–October 3, 2026) features a keynote lecture, artist talks, curator tours, and receptions designed to inspire conversations about the world through photography and lens-based art. Biennial Events continue throughout the month of October across Greater Cincinnati, Dayton, Columbus, and Northern Kentucky. For a list of all Biennial events, visit the Calendar. The Opening Program is free with the Biennial Pass.
Accessibility accommodations are available at select Opening Program events.
Wednesday, September 30
The Carnegie
Natural Fictions
| 5–8pm | Opening Reception |
Thursday, October 1
Cincinnati Art Museum
Nancy Rexroth: Secrets of My Power
| 5pm | Reception |
| 6pm | Lecture with Nathaniel M. Stein, Curator of Photography at the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH |
| 7pm | Book signing with Artist Nancy Rexroth |
| Assistive Listening Devices (ALDs) and American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation are provided |
Friday, October 2
Contemporary Arts Center
In the Interest of Time
| 5pm | Gallery Tour with Artists Elijah Howe, Felton, CA; Julie Renée Jones, Dayton, OH; Robyn Moore, Morehead, KY; Osamu James Nakagawa, Bloomington, IN; Jordanne Renner, Columbus, OH and Piermont, NY; Joseph Vitone, Austin, TX; and Lynn Whitney, Waterville, OH; and Curator Theresa Bembnister, Cleveland, OH |
Alice F. and Harris K. Weston Art Gallery
Paul Mpagi Sepuya: Compressed Tenses
| 6pm | Opening Reception |
Contemporary Arts Center
Widline Cadet: Seremoni Disparisyon (Ritual [Dis]Appearance)
| 7pm | Talk with Curator Kristen Gaylord, Herzfeld Curator of Photography and Media Arts at the Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI |
| Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) is provided | |
| 8pm | Opening Reception for Widline Cadet: Seremoni Disparisyon (Ritual [Dis]Appearance) and In the Interest of Time |
Saturday, October 3
Memorial Hall
| Noon–6pm | Artist Talks and Keynote Lecture |
| Noon | Lunch |
| 1pm | Natural Fictions Conversation with Artists Joshua Berg, Covington, KY; Heesoo Kwon, Los Angeles, CA; and Phillip Maisel, San Francisco, CA; moderated by Curator Lindsay Albert, Program Manager, KADIST, San Francisco, CA |
| 2pm | Paul Mpagi Sepuya: Compressed Tenses Conversation with Paul Mpagi Sepuya, Artist, Los Angeles, CA, and Carmen Winant, Artist and Roy Lichtenstein Chair of Studio Art at the Ohio State University, Columbus, OH |
| 3pm | Nancy Rexroth: Secrets of My Power Conversation with Curator Nathaniel M. Stein, Curator of Photography at the Cincinnati Art Museum, Cincinnati, OH, and Elizabeth Leitzell, Photographer and Short Filmmaker, Philadelphia, PA |
| 4pm | Trevor Paglen: the most merciful thing in the world Performance by Trevor Paglen, Artist, New York, NY, and San Francisco, CA |
| 5pm | The Long View Keynote Lecture by Daniel Immerwahr, Bergen Evans Professor in the Humanities at Northwestern University, Chicago, IL |
| Assistive Listening Devices (ALDs) and Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) are provided |
FotoFocus Center
Trevor Paglen: the most merciful thing in the world
| 6pm | Reception |
FotoFocus strives to create a welcoming, supportive, diverse, and inclusive environment in our workplace, in our programming, and in our partnerships with artists, curators, collaborators, and the public. For questions regarding accessibility accommodations during FotoFocus events, please email info@fotofocus.org.
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