All of the Remembrance photographers are either currently Somerville residents or have strong connections to Somerville and are part of the amazing community of artists that has long made Somerville such a vibrant place to live and experience the world. All were paid for their work as part of pandemic relief efforts for artists by the Somerville Arts Council, which is an initiative of the City of Somerville.
Jaina Cipriano is creating visual metaphors for emotions she has trouble defining. She builds physical environments that open her subjects up to become part of something bigger. This primes the space for an authenticity that is so visceral it brings the viewer back to their own memories. Jaina’s work takes the shape of a dream you wake up already forgetting, tasting only the vivid edges while the center dissolves. Her work was recently published in GRLSQUASH, Gastronomica, and The Boston Herald. Jaina has just wrapped on her first short film, “You Don’t Have to Take Orders from The Moon,” a magical realism story about the darkness inside and outside us.
Kathlyn Almeida is a Latinx filmmaker and photographer who grew up in Somerville. She hopes to grow a platform in which she can tell stories of the groups normally not represented in the media.
Charles Daniels was born on a cotton farm in rural Alabama. His family moved to Roxbury when he was 11 where he was shocked to experience snow for the very first time. Charles has worked in rock & roll, touring with Rod Stewart and the Faces, as well as a horse trainer and a few other things best left unsaid. Throughout it all, he has had a camera. Issues of race and economic disparity are recurring elements in much of his work. He debuted the multimedia project “Living in America” (named in honor of James Brown) in Prague, Czech Republic, and held a solo exhibition of images of the Million Man March in Glasgow, Scotland. He also has an extensive portfolio of both still images and videos focused on dance and movement.
Asia Kepka is a Polish born artist residing in Boston. She studied set design at The School of Theater and Film Set Design in Lodz (Poland) and picked up her first camera upon her arrival in US in 1990. She graduated from New England School of Photography in 1994. For more than 20 years she has worked as a professional photographer for publications such as Time Magazine , The New York Times Magazine and hundreds others. Her personal work has been exhibited across the country and Europe , her decade long project “Bridget and I”; and “Horace and Agnes – A Love Story “ was on display in solo show at The Griffin Museum of Photography Oct 9th 2014- Nov 4th 2014. In this project Kepka shows off her skills as a set designer/photographer and a squirrel. Her recent work includes many music videos which she directs and shoots. She designs and creates unique sets as well as elaborate costumes. She is a 2010 finalist of Mass Cultural Council Artist Fellowship. In 2016 “Horace and Agnes – A Love Story “ was published by Penguin Random House.
Yorgos Efthymiadis is an artist/curator from Greece who resides in Somerville, MA, and a board member of Somerville Arts Council. He was a Critical Mass finalist in 2018, a finalist for the 2017 Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship, and a recipient of the St. Botolph Club Foundation 2017 Emerging Artist Award. He has exhibited nationally and internationally and is represented by Gallery Kayafas in Boston. In 2015 he created a gallery in his own kitchen, titled “The Curated Fridge”. The idea behind this project is to celebrate fine art photography and connect photographers around the world. There is a guest curator for every show which run on a quarterly basis, free of charge.
www.yorgosphoto.com
Instagram: @yorgosphoto
Caleb Cole was born in Indianapolis and is a former altar server, scout, and 4-H Grand Champion in Gift Wrapping. Caleb’s mother instilled in them a love of garage sales and thrift stores, where they developed a fascination with the junk that people leave behind. They are a 2015 Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellow, 2013 Hearst 8×10 Biennial Winner, 3-time Magenta Foundation Flash Forward Winner, 2011 St. Botolph Club Foundation Emerging Artist Award winner, 2011 Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellowship Finalist, 2009 Artadia Award winner, and a 2009 Photolucida Critical Mass finalist. Caleb exhibits regularly at a variety of national venues and has held solo shows in Boston, New York, Chicago, and St. Louis, among others. Their work is in the permanent collections of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Newport Art Museum, Davis Art Museum, Brown University Art Museum and Leslie Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art. They are represented by Gallery Kayafas, Boston. Photographs in Collaboration with Greer Muldowney.
www.calebxcole.com
Instagram: @calebxcole