The FotoFocus Center, a new 14,700 square-foot gallery and arts center in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, opens today after more than five years of planning. Designed by local architect Jose Garcia, the building features a grayscale exterior that shifts from black to white, referencing photography, and a stairwell modeled after a camera's viewfinder. The inaugural exhibition, "Big Tent," showcases 55 artists from Cincinnati, the U.S., and abroad, inspired by Amanda Gorman's poem "In This Place (An American Lyric)." Artistic director Kevin Moore says the space allows year-round programming beyond the organization's existing biennial festival.
This opening matters because it transforms FotoFocus from a biennial-focused nonprofit into a permanent, year-round cultural institution dedicated to photography in Cincinnati. The "Big Tent" exhibition, timed to the 250th anniversary of the United States, intentionally engages with themes of American democracy and diverse perspectives, reflecting photography's power to comment on society. The new center also strengthens the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood's arts ecosystem, adding a major venue for large-scale photography exhibitions and community engagement.