“We are honored to present, along with our partners at the Dayton Daily News, ’In the Balance,’ this modest effort to unite our community and its trials of the COVID-19 pandemic through art — the quiet, poignant and reflective work of 26 photographers,” said Eva Buttacovoli, executive director of The Contemporary Dayton.
Click below to view the complete gallery of photographs. Scroll below to read the story behind each of the selected images.
The stories behind the photographs
Adam Alonzo: “Reflection”
Credit: Adam Alonzo
Credit: Adam Alonzo
It’s impossible to take pictures of something that isn’t there, but the very emptiness of these photos conveys the sense of isolation and apprehension that prevailed during March 2020. We were told to stay home, to keep apart, and we did. Streets and sidewalks were quiet, and even at lunchtime a parking lot in the Oregon District was vacant. As I walked the brick streets of my neighborhood, the only person around was the one holding the camera, so I leaned over a puddle and photographed my own reflection.
Rebekah Alviani: “I Can Do This”
alvianiphotography.com | @alviani_photo
Credit: Rebekah Alviani
Credit: Rebekah Alviani
During the initial lockdown due to COVID-19, I was right in the middle of my second semester at Bowling Green State University. I am a graduate student and Master of Fine Arts candidate working toward a focus in Digital Arts. I found myself with little to no motivation to make artwork, even though I feel a deep personal sense of fulfillment as an artist.
I came across an exhibition opportunity with the theme, Portraits of Self-Isolation. I decided that this would be an excellent prompt to bring me back into a making mindset. However, I still had no motivation and I did not work on this piece for a very long time. Finally, on the day of the submission deadline, I forced myself to make something. Anything! This image is a result of my push to be creative in any sense.
The title, I Can Do This…, comes as a reminder to myself. That I made it through the initial lockdown and that I am capable of regaining my creativity to complete my degree program. Perhaps, in spite of the pandemic.
Stephanie Baker: “Dayton Quarantine”
Credit: Stephanie Baker
Credit: Stephanie Baker
By the end of March, I had lost both of my jobs due to the pandemic. I had received news that my father had tested positive for COVID-19 and was in the hospital. He would spend over a month there, mostly in ICU and on a ventilator. I created this self-portrait as a reflection of my feelings of isolation, hopelessness and disconnection.
Paul Bruce: “Together, Apart”
Credit: Paul Bruce
Credit: Paul Bruce
I have been fascinated by the way family and community have figured out ways to communicate in these trying times. Chris could visit his mom and talk through the screen. Then a nursing home assistant came by to say the window could not be open. Now what? “I’ll call you mom!” So Chris and his mother, June, were able to communicate and still stay safe. These times are bizarre and can be scary. But we adapt to keep things in the balance.
Shon Curtis: “Our Praise is Our Protest”
www.shoncurits.com | @iamshoncurtis | @shonshot
Credit: Shon Curtis
Credit: Shon Curtis
With COVID-19 creating a new dynamic for social interaction, spoken word artist and healer Sierra Leone asked me to come document a Summer Solstice event she curated “Our Praise is Our Protest,” a social distancing gathering at Eastwood park to honor those that have come before us (ancestors) through celebration and traditions to bring in a new energy in a trying time.
These images were candid compositions that best captured the idea of community celebrating nature and culture and togetherness in the safest way with social distancing practices and masks.
Erica Goulart: “Quarantine Self Portrait”
ericagoulartphotos.com | @ericangoulart
Credit: Erica Goulart
Credit: Erica Goulart
I treated Quarantine as a mental health vacation. I ate food, baked, and most importantly, watched a ton of YouTube videos and TikToks. I also thought a lot about the concept of time, and how it passed so quickly. So, in this photo, I am up against the corner isolated. The bare walls and cold lighting represent time and how it all blurred together. The plastic symbolizes the barrier we now keep between ourselves and others. And most importantly, the beaming light represents the endless hours I spent looking at my phone screen.
Shawna Hatton: “Grad Gown Pick up” & “Spring Shopping”
Credit: Shawna Hatton
Credit: Shawna Hatton
Credit: Shawna Hatton
Credit: Shawna Hatton
These photographs represent some of my personal documentation of this time in history. “Collective Grief” and “Collective Anxiety” were never in my vocabulary until March 12, 2020. I don’t know why I felt like I needed to document it because I will never forget it.
While my reflections are nothing compared to the unspeakable suffering and loss that some have experienced, the small life changes, from the perspective of a mother may be relatable to someone. A simple run to the grocery was no longer simple — it was downright stressful in March and April.
The sadness for my teens with big events being canceled: senior year, coming home instead of studying abroad, online schooling. However, in spite of this, I witnessed so much kindness in our community: patience with each other at the store, mask making, the support of local restaurants, honoring a senior with porch signs and gifts, school administrators and teachers selflessly coming up with a creative solution for graduation. I will always be grateful for “Collective Kindness.”
Matthew Helton: “Bread”
Credit: Matthew Helton
Credit: Matthew Helton
The pandemic has affected this area with many people losing their jobs. Some, who are at a higher risk to be affected by this virus, are forced to find support throughout the community for help while others seek to provide goods and services to the community earning any type of income they can.
A gentleman just out of frame in Bread has made a sign asking his community for donations of food after losing his job.
Glenna Jennings: “Corona Table #3 (Dayton, Ohio)”
glennajennings.com | @glenna_goes_places
Credit: Glenna Jennings
Credit: Glenna Jennings
2020 was set to be a banner year for my long-term series At Table (20005-2020), which documents everyday spaces of expression and connection — dining rooms, kitchen tables, restaurants and bars around the world. In locations including the USA, Mexico, Canada, China and Europe, I have used my lens to navigate and document from a perspective that is local in depth but global in breadth.
My “tablescapes” offer subtle moments of drama and humor in which gestures, expressions and objects combine to perform as both cultural artifacts and personal memories. I see the table as a space that can often transcend cultural barriers to become a place for authentic interaction. The series was set to conclude this year with visits to Berlin, Prague, New Orleans, Bogota and beyond.
Instead, I have had the opportunity to focus on moments shared close to home. The small, “safe” gatherings shared here include small-town breakfast quesadillas, homegrown corn on the cob, a beloved springer doodle and a rediscovered bubble machine. They offer moments of active togetherness in a time of necessary separation, social distance and civil unrest.
Each image has its own story, bearing a direct relationship to the unusual yet universal circumstances of our gatherings both in and out of doors. Yet this special series, Corona Tables, will serve as a reminder of the year we struggled — separately and together — to survive a pandemic while putting food (and often drink) on the table.
Julie Renee Jones: “Interior Cloud, Light Beam”
Credit: Julie Renee Jones
Credit: Julie Renee Jones
Interior Cloud, Light Beam is an image I created for my newest body of work that explores an intimate, psychological connection and experience with the weather. In this piece, I sought to make an image about clouds, but instead of going outside to point my camera up, I considered what it would look like to make that same image inside the home. I treated the white curtains and walls like a solid representation of a cloud: where light refracts and is filtered softly through a delicate substrate, and when parted, reveals a beam of sunlight.
Becky Khan: “Pandemic Warmth”
Credit: Becky Khan
Credit: Becky Khan
I am an amateur senior citizen photographer with a lifelong passion for photography. I submitted this photo to the Dayton Daily News and had it published in May to my delight. I feel it captures the effort to reach out to neighbors in a warm and meaningful way without in-person contact.
This photo was taken on April 10 in Oakwood. A neighbor on Peach Orchard Avenue decorated her sidewalk with chalk drawings. It was a cheerful sight during the stay-at-home order. It was dusk, so the mini lights on the small tree are visible.
Michael Krieger: “Things to be Missed”
Credit: Michael Krieger
Credit: Michael Krieger
The three images I am submitting for “In the Balance” were photographed during some of my extended strolls to assuage the stir-craziness brought on by “shelter-in-place” isolation. As I roamed the deserted streets and alleys as a “flaneur,” I found myself both lonely and liberated at the same time. The mood of the images reflects a great sense of melancholy I discovered as I roamed deserted neighborhoods, aimless, yet compelled to document the haunted silence of the stillborn spring.
Mara Quintero: “Ceiling”
Credit: Mara Quintero
Credit: Mara Quintero
This photo of the ceiling describes the way time seemed to fall apart and pass us by as we spent days upon days in quarantine, unable to work or leave the house. There is a quiet beauty in stillness, but a stale air that surrounds inactivity.
Ishmael McKinney: “Outside”
Credit: Ishmael McKinney
Credit: Ishmael McKinney
These photos were taken as a part of my QuaranZine project focusing on the new normal that exists due to the pandemic. “Outside” captures the model Tiara Whatley gazing out the window of her apartment as the pandemic made going outside a daunting task.
Rachel Girard Reisert: “Bubble” & “Bags”
Credit: Rachel Girard Reisert
Credit: Rachel Girard Reisert
Credit: Rachel Girard Reisert
Credit: Rachel Girard Reisert
Over the course of the last six months, I have found a renewed interest in photographing the spaces and people around me. Photography has always functioned as a tool to help me see clearly and fully. It offers a method to step back, and to find solid ground, which is of particular importance at this time. These photographs are a collection of simple moments in one life. They serve as a reminder of the true enormity of one’s life, as I think about this moment of collective loss.
Brittany Robinson: “12:38 p.m.”
www.brittanyrobinson.art | @brobinsonnn | #PPEdebrisproject
Credit: Brittany Robinson
Credit: Brittany Robinson
Like most catastrophic events in our world, COVID-19 has brought out both the best and worst of humankind. These images were found during the Ohio stay-at-home order during socially-distanced walks, bypassing windows full of teddy bears and optimistic messages. There are many situations and pandemic solutions for us to disagree upon, but I think we can all agree about one thing: we need to take better care of our Earth as a whole. Proper mask disposal is just as important as proper mask usage, and we are setting ourselves up for failure if we don’t take care of each other and our world.
Jeffrey M. Smith (Art of Frozen Time): “Dayton Rainbow Skyline”
artoffrozentime.com | @artoffrozentime
Credit: Copyright © 2020 Jeffrey M. Smi
Credit: Copyright © 2020 Jeffrey M. Smi
This scene took place on May 3, 2020, during the midst of the pandemic, which consumed our nation. Of the many positive stories which became part of the narrative, one lies in our awesome parks. Due to the vision of those who established the Miami Conservancy District, the Miami Valley enjoys a rich park and trail system. As families made daily adjustments to their quarantined lives, our many expansive parks and trails frequently served as safe, open spaces to exercise the body... and the mind.
I think this scene is symbolic of Dayton’s resilience and future. In the minutes before this scene, the winds were blustery, the skies drab, and my camera and I dripping wet. As if mimicking that Dayton optimism, the clouds parted seconds before sunset, producing this colorful panorama, as if signifying we all have brighter days ahead!
Jill Spencer: “The Coworker”
Credit: Jill Spencer
Credit: Jill Spencer
The COVID-19 pandemic created many challenges for everyone around the world.
As a full-time working professional and creative artist, adjusting to a new routine was a struggle. Having a family member with a kidney transplant meant I had to be extra careful in all aspects of my work and creative life. My daily routine suddenly changed from going to work in an office Monday through Friday and practicing photography on the weekends, to working and taking photographs from home.
As a photographer whose primary subject is horses, with the newfound inability to travel to equestrian events and horse farms, I had to find a new way to create photographs. During this time, I photographed what was around me: my cat, my work, pandemic supplies and the view from my back door. This experience forced me out of my comfort zone and allowed me to appreciate the beauty and simplicity of our everyday surroundings.
Leah Stahl: “Essential Specimens 2”
leahstahl.com | @browndogblues
Credit: Leah Stahl
Credit: Leah Stahl
Beyond These Walls is a series in-progress documenting my time spent staying home, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. What began as an exercise to remain connected to my students by shooting their daily assignments with them, quickly became a necessary habit for me in navigating these crazy times.
In my time at home, I began documenting what was coming to life in my own backyard. As the days/weeks/months go by, I marvel at the resilience of nature’s seasons and cycles. Documenting these changes allows me to slow down and trust a process to which I have no control. It’s a reminder that in all this chaos, there is beauty and stillness.
Kathy Turner: “Our World Turned Upside Down in 2020”
Credit: Kathy Turner
Credit: Kathy Turner
The anxiety levels of dealing with COVID-19 kept increasing as March turned into April and then into May, June and July. Because of our advanced ages, Dennis and I are at high risk for the disease. Our kids and grandkids were dealing with working from home, a furlough, and adapting to online classes. The biggest worry was waiting for the birth of grandson #3 in June, hoping against hope that he could be born healthy during a global pandemic.
Staying in the house all day just increased our stress. Dennis and I discovered that taking advantage of the walking trails at the Five Rivers MetroParks, the Miami Valley walking/bike trails, and the area’s outdoor historic sites helped reduce the worries and nightmares. I started photographing our mini adventures with my cell phone camera, both to help us keep track of the days and to send to our family as if to say, “Your parents are still healthy and finding some joy in exploring the Miami Valley.”
The photographs I am submitting reflect these quests, and I chose the ones that were most successful in bringing a much-needed smile to our kids and grandkids. The first photo, of the Wright brothers’ hats, was taken at Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum on April 22, 2020. The second photo, of the upside-down street crossing sign, was taken at the Wright Brothers Memorial at WPAFB on May 10, 2020.
And yes, Grandson #3 was born healthy on lucky June 13th at Miami Valley Hospital.
Joel Whitaker: “Walking the Dog #2”
joelwhitaker.com | @jwhitaker1515
Credit: Joel Whitaker
Credit: Joel Whitaker
I’ve spent most of this time working from home and walking my dog. At some point, I started carrying a camera and making photographs during my walks. I hoped this would help me to reclaim some sense of amazement in our mundane day to day routines — to once again be looking and seeing. My photographs do not necessarily abide by any theme or follow any direction, other than the path I walk every morning and afternoon.
Ryan Taylor: “Snow Trillium”
ryanltaylor.com | @ryanltaylorphoto
Credit: Ryan L. Taylor Photography
Credit: Ryan L. Taylor Photography
These are all photographs I have taken in Southwest Ohio during the pandemic. They include various natural subjects that I have set out to find while hiking out in nature.
Their relation to the theme of this virtual showcase is that I took them during the lockdown times while social isolating. I was alone during these trips typically through rain and other rough weather or terrain while others chose to stay-at-home. Pandemic or not, this is what I would have been doing anyway. Photographing wildflowers, viewing birds or other wildlife, and scenic waterfalls. Everyone has a story of what they were doing during the lock-down and like therapy, this was what I did to stay occupied and sane.
Chris Yakopcic: “Empty Evening”
Credit: Chris Yakopcic
Credit: Chris Yakopcic
The intent of this work is to communicate to those afar and remind those nearby, what a day in life was like during this pandemic induced stay-at-home order, when business districts and social epicenters were converted to ghost towns as an undetectable terror consumed the streets.
Thus, this project displays a community in lockdown, presented not from our planet’s epicenters of business and tourism, but from this fascinating little stretch of road in middle America that I call home.
I hope this work will inspire my community to believe that even when life-halting change occurs, new opportunities are always created in the process.
Kate Slonaker: “Distance Chat”
Credit: KATE SLONAKER
Credit: KATE SLONAKER
From March, neighbors learned to chat together following social distancing.
Kyle Wilkinson: “Middle Town”
kylewilkinsonportfolio.com | @kwilk_05
Credit: Kyle Wilkinson
Credit: Kyle Wilkinson
During our quarantine, everything felt suspended, but I could feel the kinetic energy. The landscapes in my photographs feel the same way to me now. They are sitting idle waiting for that moment to re-emerge as a space filled with life.
Amalia Rose Petreman: “Stripped”
Credit: Amalia Rose Petreman
Credit: Amalia Rose Petreman
The overwhelming and surreal feelings that have prevailed in the last several months unavoidably make their way into how I see and respond to things right now. This photograph is one of many found spaces that no longer require image manipulation to feel a bit unreal. Times and places like these, once invented or altered, now exist without needing that intervention.
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