George Eastman Museum logoRochester, N.Y. (February 21, 2024) — The artistic works of the Flower City Arts Center’s Studio 678 Photo Club will once again adorn the walls of the George Eastman Museum this spring, as the museum’s newest Gallery Obscura exhibition opens on Saturday, March 2. These creative works by students of the 2023-24 club are inspired by the students’ vision of the world around them. Works from the Studio 678 Photo Club were featured in the inaugural exhibition in the museum’s new Gallery Obscura in the spring of 2023.

Started in 1999 as an eight-week pilot project, Studio 678 Photo Club is now an annual thirty-five-week after-school program, and in its twenty-sixth consecutive year. The program is offered free of charge to students in grades six through eight in the Rochester City School District.

Working with program mentors and volunteers, thirty participants in the fall of 2023 learned how to use a professional film camera and develop film. With these acquired skills, students took the lead on their art process from beginning to end. In a very hands-on creative journey, students practiced photography within the studio and around the community, as well as made their own black-and-white prints in a darkroom. Participants also wrote poems and stories to accompany their photographs, which were matted and framed by the museum’s exhibition team. Additionally, students worked in a digital lab to create a collaborative book of their images and writings, weaving together their narratives.

Through the camera and creative writing projects, Studio 678 Photo Club students have the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of their community and build connections. All of the projects in the program are designed to enhance knowledge of core school subjects, develop conceptual thinking skills, build confidence, and empower youth to express their vision and voice.

Select students from Studio 678 Photo Club will read poetry that accompanies their photograph in their exhibition in the Gallery Obscura on Thursdays in April. This event is free with regular museum admission on April 10, 11, 17, 18, and 24. For more information, visit eastman.org/gallery-studio-678.

About Gallery Obscura

The museum's new Gallery Obscura space features exhibitions created or presented in collaboration with community institutions and school and youth programs, projects focused on Greater Rochester, and exhibitions from the collections that are thematically related to regional events or that support other museum initiatives and programming. Gallery Obscura is graciously sponsored by Nocon & Associates.

Exhibition Proposal Submissions

Exhibition proposals for the Gallery Obscura may be submitted to GalleryObscura@eastman.org. Proposals should briefly describe the project and include six to ten sample images or links to moving media content. Because of the structure of exhibition scheduling, not all proposals can be considered. Single-artist and artist-organized exhibitions will not be considered.

About Flower City Arts Center

Flower City Arts Center is a community-based not-for-profit organization that educates, encourages, and inspires all people to create and enjoy the visual arts. Established in 1970, Flower City Arts Center offers classes and workshops for youths and adults with an emphasis on three areas: photography and digital arts, printmaking and book arts, and ceramics. It also provides exhibition spaces and facilities for studio artists. The center has an ongoing commitment to art for all people, and its programs are available to community members of all ages, incomes, and backgrounds.

Flower City Arts Center is an institutional member of the National Guild for Community Arts Education. Flowercityarts.org

About the George Eastman Museum
Founded in 1947, the George Eastman Museum is the world’s oldest photography museum and one of the largest film archives in the United States, located on the historic Rochester estate of entrepreneur and philanthropist George Eastman, the pioneer of popular photography. Its holdings comprise more than 400,000 photographs, 41,000 motion picture films, the world’s preeminent collection of photographic and cinematographic technology, one of the leading libraries of books related to photography and cinema, and extensive holdings of documents and other objects related to George Eastman. As a research and teaching institution, the Eastman Museum has an active publishing program and its L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation’s graduate program (a collaboration with the University of Rochester) makes critical contributions to film preservation. For more information, visit eastman.org and follow the George Eastman Museum account on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Threads.

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Promotional Images for Flower City Arts Center - 678 Photo Club are available to download: https://eastmanmuseum.box.com/v/678galleryobscura.

Media Contact: Nate Smith
(585) 327-4813
nsmith@eastman.org