In July of 2021, Oakland skateboarder Ben Tolford noticed an unusual pile of trash on the street: binders full of photographic slides, hundreds of images apparently taken in Oakland in the 1970s and 80s. Handwriting on the slides identified the photographer as Raymond Cooper. Tolford eventually found Aja Cooper, Raymond’s daughter, and learned that Raymond Cooper had been a professional photographer in Oakland from the 70s into the 90s. Cooper’s photo archive was damaged in a house fire in 1990 and, even worse, stolen in a burglary in 2021, years after Cooper had passed away. Aja was, of course, overjoyed that some of the lost archive was recovered. This amazing story was first documented by Liam O’Donoghue in his podcast East Bay Yesterday, followed by an article in SF Gate in October 2022.

East Bay Photo Collective is proud to announce a collaboration with Aja Cooper for the first-ever exhibition of her father’s lost work. Thousands of images were scanned, with a curated selection reprinted for this exhibition.

We are grateful to The Leonian Foundation, Underdog Film Lab, and Uproar Design & Print for their support of this exhibition.

We are water | We are earth | We are sky is an exhibition about how we live entwined with natural systems. We do not co-exist with nature - we exist within it. In our increasingly digitized lives it can be easy to forget that we remain physical animals, tied to a physical body that is made up of natural elements. We are still 70% water, we are still what we eat, we still breathe the air. We are inherently one with our ecosystems. When our ecosystems are healthy, so are we. When we pump toxins into the air and water, we pump toxins into ourselves.

Since the 1999 Columbine High School mass shooting and the subsequent explosion of gun violence in the U.S., Judy Dater has been driven to explore the many sides of the gun divide in America. Her research revealed that gun owners, and their personal reasons for owning them, are diverse and do not fit neatly into stereotypes.

These portraits and interviews were conducted without judgement and with the desire to display the diversity of gun owners in Judy’s backyard; the Bay Area. The intent of these photographs, as for most of her work, is to open a dialogue and ask questions, not to give answers. Judy loves the phrase, “Don’t believe everything you think.”

This exhibition has been funded by the Leonian Foundation and Joan Brenchley, friend and supporter of Judy Dater.

An exhibition exploring how family stories and oral histories are preserved, passed down, and shared by our elders. How do we know who we are or where we're headed, if we don't know how we got here? These photographic artists explore themes of identity, history and self actualization through family archives, documents, memories and personal photographs to help retell the stories of their elders and their connections to them. It is through the stories we inherit that help us understand who we are and the journey it took to stand where we are. We are the extension of those who came before us. These are the stories we share.

Featured Artists: Gene Dominique, Jessica Chen, Laura Ming Wong, Matthew Hoang, Najee Tobin, Ngân Vũ, Senny Mau, and Stella Kalaw

Curated by Jessica Chen

Womanhood is an experience. With all of the glamor and grace that comes with being a woman, there is also messiness and frustration. For this exhibition, East Bay Photo Collective has partnered with Counter Collective to explore what it means to be a woman today. We have collected submissions that explore all facets of womanhood – from feelings, to symbolic objects, to gestures or forms or self-expression. With this work, we would like to examine the complexities of womanhood and femininity beyond the confines of assigned sex, age, or location.

About Counter Collective

The Counter Collective was founded in the summer of 2020 to create a space that elevates the voices of those looked over in traditional art circles. We aim to provide the opportunity for female-identifying and non-binary folx to share their work in established spaces, to hold workshops to encourage their practices, and overall, to create a network where we can exchange ideas and encourage each other’s growth.

Polaroid, Impossible, Instax - instant photography is all about the magic of the moment, about art coming to life before our eyes. OPW's first exhibition of Instant Photography, in cooperation with PolaCon BayArea, features local artists who've taken the creative moment to the highest level. If you love the click! and whirr! of a Polaroid camera and the wonderful mystery of the emerging image, you'll love this show!

PolaCon is the world’s first (and only?) three-day instant film conference. PolaCon BayArea is March 10-12 with a day-zero cocktail party at Oakland Photo Workshop on Thursday March 9th. Sign up to attend PolaCon BayArea here.

Oakland Photo Workshop’s first exhibition of 2023 celebrates the best of East Bay Photo Collective’s Film Swap Show and Tells.

Exhibiting Artists

Anita Gay - Gene X Hwang - Myleen Hollero - Fairlight de Michele - Ryan Noonan - Ernie Luppi - Ronald Orlando - Jenny Sampson - Marvin Moser - Philip Krayna - Jessica Greaux - Lucas Yan - J.M. Golding - Al Brydon - Alex Drysdale - Vince Donovan - Brian Shapiro - Hannah Rohret

What does family mean to you? Is it the people who raised you? The friends you’ve made? Members of your church, your fellow sports-fans, your kids, your neighbors, your pets? Are you a family of one, a member of the family of humanity?

There are many ways to define the meaning of family; Oakland Photo Workshop’s final exhibition of 2022 is a photographic interpretation of family, by our family at the East Bay Photo Collective.

Exhibiting Artists

Alan Krakauer - Amanda R. Bensel - Bob Shonkoff - Chris Gibbons - DeAnna Tibbs - Douglas Stinson - Eric Weiss - Evan Kartheiser - Fairlight de Michele - Gene Dominique - Gina Gaiser - Guy Sussman - Hannah Rohret - J. M. Golding - Jackie Chou - Jessica Chen - Julianne Clark - Jyoti Liggin - Kendra Luck - Lucas Yan - Maria Budner - Matthew Krupoff - Najee Tobin - Ngân Vũ - Paige Le - Philip Krayna - Senny Mau - Susan Harding

Hypervisibility is a double edged sword for black people everywhere. Our being put on display has created opportunities where there were none given, yet it more often creates opportunities for our likeness and our culture to be exploited and appropriated by everyone else. When our image is controlled by others, it creates a zoo-like atmosphere where we feel violated, reduced, and disrespected. Only when black people are seen through the Black Gaze is the black body respected, the black mind revered, the black spirit nurtured. The East Bay Photo Collective invites you to bear witness to a celebration of black intimacy curated by black, photographed by black, and modeled by sovereign, divine, and legendarily blessed black beings.

Exhibiting Artists

Arieanne Evans - Chenayi Tavaziva - Christian Jalon - Diana Oliphant - Emily Erce - Isiah ThoughtPoet Veney - Rohan DaCosta

The night offers a different energy than the day. Most of us tend to dedicate our daytime hours to the labor it takes to sustain our lives and all of the miscellaneous chores that it takes to maintain order in our lives. Often, we look to the night hours for a sense of relief from this labor. It is for this reason that the night presents boundless opportunity for excitement, stimulation, partying, and debauchery. We gasp when we hear that a heinous crime was committed in "broad daylight". The night offers cover. The night is a cloak. The night is a mask. A person could assume a totally different personality by night. The night holds the potential for lawlessness, a recklessness, unfiltered human expression. Some might say that all of this is consistent with a youthful energy, an energy that throws caution to the wind, because consequences tend to arrive in the morning.

This exhibition, curated by Rohan DaCosta, features twenty two photographers from around the Bay Area, and their relationship with creatures of the night.

Exhibiting Artists

Jeremy Austin De Leon - Alex Wu - Calder Anderson - Daniel Danzig - Dean Snodgrass - Eugene Dominique - Edgardo Cervano-Soto - Geoff House - Hernando Conwi - Kaitlyn Zorilla - Matthew Krupoff - Philip Krayna - Rami Levinson - Rusty Weston - Sam Adams - Scott Bulleit - Sherry Karver - Stephanie Williamson - Susan Harding - Vishesh Singh - Vivien Qian - Kathy Walton

"How does it feel when a person you hold in high regard does not follow through on a promise made to you? What if that broken promise leads to your insult, your injury, your death, your broken heart? Would it make you question your relationship with this person? Would it force you to withdraw and redraw boundaries to preserve your precious energy, your sovereignty?

America has always billed itself as the premier destination for prosperity and happiness, a beacon of hope and equality for all, the land of milk and honey, a place where any dream could come true.

Many of us now understand that this promise often rings less true for America’s non-white citizens. We now know that our beloved country will again and again fail to protect us, will fail to uplift us, will fail to love us, will fail to celebrate us if it does not profit from that celebration.

The United States ironically undervalues community in favor of championing the ideal of the “self-made man”.

“Meet Me At Your Promise” examines how the most recent acts of violence against the Asian community have necessitated a process of addressing the trauma of this broken promise, of redrawing boundaries to preserve ones energy and dignity, of demanding more from one’s country, of finding solace in community, of celebrating the people who make us whole"

Exhibiting Artists

Zimo Zhao - Aidan Jung - Jun Yang - Shelley Wong - Kacy Jung - Giovanna Lomanto

Fashion impacts us all. It is more than just what we choose to wear. In essence, it is a daring expression of our egos and a creative introduction to our life stories. The East Bay Photo Collective presents a celebration of fashion and storytelling as seen through the eyes and told through the lens of an extraordinary selection of gifted photographers near and far. It is our great honor to share works borne out of richly diverse cultural and professional backgrounds, engaging these works in conversation with one another, examining how costumes tell us who we might become and perhaps who we really are. Please join us as we raise a toast and turn a critical eye to the world of fashion.

Exhibiting Artists

Chenayi Tavaziva - Katherine Pekala - Natalie Jane - Rohan DaCosta - Samantha Tyler Cooper - Svenja Blobel - Hannah Thornhill - Isiah ThoughPoet Veney - Katie Lovecraft - Macy Bryant - Zayira Ray - Mettro

Our long awaited members’ exhibition, FOOD WITH A TWIST! Featuring the work of East bay Photo Collective members, this exhibition explores our relationship with food - the comforts, challenges, and essential aspects of our daily interactions with the nourishment that sustains us.

We are so proud of the work on our walls, and are very excited to share it with you! The exhibition will be up through the end of February - perhaps longer. We hope to have a party to celebrate, as soon as it’s relatively safe to do so. Keep your eyes open - all will be welcome to attend.

Featuring

Malcom Wallace of East Bay Cycling

Rohan DaCosta of Chinatown Solidarity

We’re excited to host these two artists for the inaugural show opening our new gallery space Oakland Photo Workshop. Their work represents a perfect blend of personal vision and community expression that we’re striving for.

Rohan DaCosta’s images are taken from a march he organized in response to the murders of eight people of Asian descent in Atlanta, Georgia. “Gordon Parks once described his camera as a weapon, presumably against oppression. In my own humble way, using the skills that I possess, I wanted to show the Asian community that Black people see and acknowledge them today and we recognize the journey of their ancestors as well.” Rohan’s full statement, as well as images and poetry from the march, are on display at Oakland Photo Workshop.

Malcolm Wallace has been involved with the Bay Area bicycle scene for many years. "My background is in social work and community development, so I have a passion for connecting with people on an emotional level and building communities. My style is influenced by Hip Hop culture and my environment...I just try to put some of myself into every image and keep it raw while reflecting my people. "

EBPCO has teamed up with talented high school students from the Oakland School for the Arts Digital Media program to present The Future, an exhibition of photographs exploring the students' varied interpretations of this theme.

This show is a culmination of a series of student portfolio reviews in January and February during which EBPCO's Education Coordinator Brooks Fletcher guided the students through the stages of the discussing and refining their work. These efforts produced some seriously stunning and thought provoking work that we can't wait for you to see!

Exhibiting Artists

Avril Jensen - Cadence Patrick - Cole Kassirer - David Gallagher - Elizabeth Truong - Elyas Yaqubi - Emma Calimag-Sisson - Emrys Mayell - Joel Moody - Maddy Slater - Morgan Holman - Thomas Williamson - Violet Wojno - Will Jennings - William Truong

Travel often reveals new viewpoints from which to experience and rethink our day-to-day lives. In a time when travel and vacation are far-off luxuries, how do we locate the unfamiliar around us and appreciate our immediate surroundings in novel ways?

How might aspects of our homes remind us of places to which we have traveled or induce daydreaming? In the words of French philosopher Gaston Bachelard in The Poetics of Space,

...the places in which we have experienced daydreaming reconstitute themselves in a new daydream, and it is because our memories of former dwelling-places are relived as daydreams that these dwelling-places of the past remain in us all the time.

In late April of 2020, the East Bay Photo Collective put out a call to ask how photographers are re-interpreting their spaces. We had a wonderful response, and it was a real delight select images for the show and the create a visual thread. The photographers also provided a short narrative for each image, describing their experience in reframing the familiar of their lives.