This public talk explores On the Flip Side, a citywide exhibition that transforms JCDecaux bus shelters across New York City, Chicago, and Boston into sites for intimate photographic encounters. In this event, each of the artists will reflect on what it means for deeply personal images—rooted in family, heritage, gender identity, material value, and aspiration—to appear in spaces typically reserved for advertising, and how public circulation reshapes their meaning.
Moderated by Assistant Curator Jenée-Daria Strand, the talk centers on the practices of Kennedi Carter, Lougè Delcy, Camila Falquez, Ruby Okoro, Dana Scruggs, and Juan Veloz—artists whose commercial work defines our contemporary moment, capturing celebrities for global platforms. Meanwhile, their fine art practices–often seen in museums and galleries–foreground tenderness and interiority, with ties to contemporary and historic cultural narratives. The discussion will examine how these photographers navigate the boundary between commercial and fine art production, and how On the Flip Side “flips” expectations by foregrounding their personal visions within the cityscape of New York, Boston and Chicago.
Attend in person at The Cooper Union’s Frederick P. Rose Auditorium. Registration is required, and capacity is limited. Seating is first come, first served so please arrive early. Your registration does not guarantee a seat. Doors will close at 6:45pm.
Accessibility: Email Gabriela López Dena, Associate Curator of Public Practice, at [email protected] with questions and requests for accessibility. Please send any needs for services or accommodations to support your participation in this program, including ASL interpretations, hearing aids, and simultaneous translation, by February 6.
