Flashpoint! Protest Photography in Print Reading Room at CPW Kingston

Flashpoint! Protest Photography in Print, 1950–Present explores the diverse roles and varying aesthetics that photography in print undertakes in its support of protest and political resistance. The exhibition comprises photobooks, zines, reproductions of posters, pamphlets, independent journals, and alternative newspapers from all over the world that address—and participate in—protest. Visitors will be able to peruse a hands-on reading room featuring many of the photobooks and zines included in the book titled Flashpoint!, edited by Russet Lederman and Olga Yatskevich (10×10 Photobooks, 2024). The works in the exhibition reflect the thematic structure of the original 10×10 book, organized into seven topics: Anti, Gender, Displacement, Race & Class, Environment, Political, and War & Violence.

Some of the questions prompted by this powerful collection of media include: Is protest photography a “tool” conceived through an “aesthetic of urgency” to be used during events as they unfold, as in an anonymously designed poster or ink-stained fliers plastered on street walls? How do we consider an elegantly designed photobook, published a year or more after an event, often with the help of well-known photographers, writers and designers, so as to document a past uprising? Whether outright rage or a more subtle artist-driven commentary, Flashpoint! covers all of these formats and sometimes transcends rigid media definitions, as it blurs the lines between what constitutes a book, zine, journal, poster or newspaper.

Gallery Hours
Thursday: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Friday: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm