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.


Mary Mattingly Named 2023 Guggenheim Fellow

Posted on May 9, 2023

2022 FotoFocus Biennial Artist Mary Mattingly was named as a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow and plans to use this opportunity for a project, Shoal, that will utilize waterways common law as a workaround for public land laws. This will increase the accessibility of public food in New York City by continuing to change foraging and growing policy on public land. FotoFocus welcomed Mattingly to Cincinnati in April 2022 for the Telephotography Symposium and pieces from her project Pull were part of the 2022 FotoFocus Curated Exhibition, On The Line.

Continue reading Mary Mattingly Named 2023 Guggenheim Fellow

2022 FotoFocus Biennial Artist Baseera Khan Wins MTV Reality Competition

Posted on April 18, 2023

2022 FotoFocus Biennial Artist Baseera Khan recently won MTV's reality competition The Exhibit: Finding the Next Great Artist. Khan competed against six other artists for the chance to win a cash prize and a solo exhibition at the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. FotoFocus reached out to Khan to learn more about their experience on the show.

Anyone living in the 21st-century is likely familiar with the cultural phenomenon that is reality television competition. From MTV originals like The Real World and the plethora... Continue reading 2022 FotoFocus Biennial Artist Baseera Khan Wins MTV Reality Competition


FotoFocus Leaves an Impact with the 2022 Biennial

Posted on February 28, 2023

Nearly 200,000 Visitors Attended Largest Edition to Date

FotoFocus, the nonprofit dedicated to championing  photography and lens-based art, is pleased to announce that the 2022 FotoFocus Biennial welcomed over 180,000 visitors to its exhibitions and events across Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Dayton, and Columbus between October 2022 and early 2023. 

The 2022 Biennial featured a record number of nearly 800 artists, curators, and participants, and united the region by examining the relationship between lens-based art and the ever-changing... Continue reading FotoFocus Leaves an Impact with the 2022 Biennial


FotoFocus Biennial: Program Week Video Gallery

Posted on December 1, 2022

FotoFocus is excited to share videos from the 2022 FotoFocus Biennial: World Record Program Week. The 2022 FotoFocus Biennial Program Week, which ran September 29–October 8, constitutes the core of the Biennial, establishing the theme and dialogues that unite the broader programming. Featuring keynotes lectures, conversations, screenings, and receptions with exceptional artists and curators, the Biennial Program is designed to inspire conversations about the world through photography and lens-based art.

Be sure to check back for a highlight video of the October 2, 2022 Keynote Lecture by Jeff Orlowski-Yang, Director, Producer, and... Continue reading FotoFocus Biennial: Program Week Video Gallery


FotoFocus Biennial Celebrates Largest Edition to Date

Posted on October 27, 2022

Over 100 Photography and Lens-based Art Exhibitions and Projects at 90 Venues Remain On View Throughout October and into Early 2023

FotoFocus, the Cincinnati-based non-profit arts organization devoted to photography and lens-based art, celebrated the opening week of the sixth edition of the FotoFocus Biennial September 29–October 8 with dozens of Biennial Program Week events. An ambitious collaboration between FotoFocus and the region’s museums, galleries, universities and non-traditional spaces, the FotoFocus Biennial brings international exhibitions and projects to a month-long celebration of photography in the... Continue reading FotoFocus Biennial Celebrates Largest Edition to Date