“The Worker”: Honoring Dignity Through Art
Photos by Rob Lehmann, NFAC Photographer
This fall, the North Fork Arts Center was honored to host "The Worker," a powerful collaborative exhibition with OLA of Eastern Long Island, curated by Kelynn Z. Alder. The show brought together 26 accomplished artists to explore a deceptively simple question: who is the worker, and how do we see their full humanity?
The exhibition emerged from conversations between Alder and OLA Executive Director Minerva Perez following the immigration raids that shook Greenport this past summer. As artists and advocates, they asked themselves what role art could play in moments of crisis and fear. The answer became this collection—portraits, photographs, and works that honor the people who build our houses, harvest our food, care for our sick, and keep our communities running.
At the heart of the show was the principle that understanding "The Worker" means moving beyond the reductive, allowing each person's full humanity to be seen, witnessed, and honored. From dignified portraits of landscapers and carpenters to celebrations of farmworkers and healthcare workers, the exhibition offered what Perez described as subjects "reaching out of their frames to see and be seen in their full humanity and dignity."
Photos by Rob Lehmann, NFAC Photographer
The works were available for sale, with proceeds benefiting the artists, OLA, and NFAC—a continuation of our ongoing partnership that has included the Latino Film Festival and Spanish-language film series.
We're grateful to Kelynn Alder for her skilled curation, to the 26 artists who lent their vision and compassion to this project, and to OLA for their partnership in creating spaces for understanding and solidarity. Rob Lehmann's beautiful photographs captured the spirit of the opening and the power of the work on view.
For a detailed look at the exhibition, including insights from the artists and the stories behind individual works, we encourage you to read the thoughtful coverage in the East End Beacon here.