The Lens

In advance of their FotoFocus Symposium keynote, photographer Mitch Epstein and art historian Robert Slifkin discuss how photography is shaped by economies as well as the paradox between its use as a tool to raise awareness in times of catastrophe rather than taking direct action. This year’s FotoFocus Symposium theme, Photo-Economics, asks us to consider how photography is both an art form and an economy and how it can tow the line between art and activism.

“The thing... Continue reading Symposium Keynote Preview: Mitch Epstein and Robert Slifkin Consider Photography as Economy and its Role in Activism

The conversations during the FotoFocus Symposium's morning session, Material Economics, consider the materials at the heart of photographic practice—silver, platinum, bitumen, paper, and chemicals—and the economic, social, and environmental histories they carry. For some, this means tracing photography back to the mines and factories where these substances originate. For others, it means looking closely at how those materials age, sustain over time, and are preserved.

To understand how materials shape the life of the photograph, we turned to two Symposium participants who have spent their careers studying and working with photographic matter itself. Lee Ann Daffner, Andrew W. Mellon... Continue reading Material Matters: A Q&A with Lee Ann Daffner and Alison Rossiter

FotoFocus has launched a Call for Entry for the upcoming 2026 FotoFocus Biennial: The Long View, welcoming lens-based artists to apply for inclusion in an exhibition at the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC). Going live today, September 11, this Call for Entry will align with the Biennial theme, The Long View.

Cincinnati, OH (September 11, 2025) — FotoFocus is pleased to announce a Call for Entry for the upcoming 2026 FotoFocus Biennial: The Long View, welcoming lens-based artists to apply for inclusion in an exhibition at... Continue reading FotoFocus Announces “Call for Entry” for 2026 Biennial: The Long View

With keynote conversation between Mitch Epstein and Robert Slifkin, and talks featuring Lauren Bon, Lee Ann Daffner, Katy Grannan, Danielle Jackson, Alison Rossiter, and others

Mitch Epstein, Ashton Clatterbuck, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 2018. ©Black River Productions, Ltd./Mitch Epstein. Courtesy of Sikkema Malloy Jenkins and Yancey Richardson

Cincinnati, OH (August 21, 2025) — FotoFocus announces its Fall 2025 Symposium: Photo-Economics, an all-day event on Saturday, October 4, 2025, at... Continue reading FotoFocus Announces Fall 2025 Symposium: Photo-Economics

Having Drawn Over 1 Million Visitors Since Its 2012 Inception, America’s Largest Photography Biennial Returns to Explore Time and Perspective

(Cincinnati, OH — April 15, 2025) — FotoFocus, the nonprofit arts organization dedicated to creating dialogue between contemporary lens-based art and the history of photography, is pleased to announce the return of the FotoFocus Biennial with its eighth edition: The Long View. Taking place in October 2026, the month-long celebration of lens-based art will consider aspects of time and perspective in photography and film,... Continue reading FotoFocus Announces Theme for 2026 FotoFocus Biennial: The Long View