The Saint Vincent Gallery at Saint Vincent College will present From Intolerance to Understanding, a traveling exhibition of photography and a multimedia installation, from Friday, Sept. 15 to Friday, Oct. 13. The exhibit is presented in conjunction with Pittsburgh Filmmakers and Pittsburgh Center for the Arts (PCA) and in cooperation with The Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh.

The cornerstone of the exhibit includes photographs from Lynn Johnson, a Pittsburgh native and a nationally recognized photojournalist. Her work has been published in Life magazine, Newsweek, National Geographic and Sports Illustrated. In 1998, the murder of African American James Byrd Jr. in Texas began a seven-year journey for Ms. Johnson as she documented hate crimes in America. From Intolerance to Understanding is the culmination of the journey.

Ms. Johnson’s photographs ask candid questions of viewers, treating locations and faces as meaningful artifacts of aggressive discrimination and intolerance. Ms. Johnson, Pittsburgh Filmmakers and PCA hope the exhibition will help build a context in which local communities, educators and children can learn and respond to our society’s continuing aspirations for tolerance.

Through the journey, Ms. Johnson followed several high-profile hate crimes, in addition to the death of Mr. Byrd, including a shooting in the Backstreet Café in Roanoke, Virginia that targeted gays and the shooting spree of a Pittsburgh man who hated white people. Ms. Johnson highlights more than the victims of the crimes, but the victim’s family and the community the crime leaves its mark upon. She believes the photos are a voice to bring groups together through these tragedies and helps to encourage tolerance among all people.

According to Saint Vincent Gallery Director Br. Nathan Cochran, O.S.B., “This is an especially timely exhibition to bring to campus. Through words and images, Ms. Johnson guides us to ask ‘who do we hate?,’ and addresses our own experiences of being excluded because we may be different.”

“I hope that it leads the viewer to observe that violence is never an alternative just because someone may be different. We may not agree with other’s beliefs or lifestyle choices, but it is never appropriate to treat them as less than human. To deal with these issues with such profound, yet non-polemic, images and words is a truly artistic accomplishment,” he added.

Through her work she invites viewers to find the meaning in each frame. She has won numerous awards including seven Golden Quills for Photojournalism and four World Press Photography Awards. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from Rochester Institute of Technology. She spent seven years as a photographer for the Pittsburgh Press before branching out as a freelance photographer.

An exhibition catalogue for From Intolerance to Understanding is available at the Saint Vincent College Bookstore and the shop at Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. An opening reception for the exhibit will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 14.

Gallery hours are noon to 3 p.m. and 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and from noon to 3 p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. The gallery is closed Mondays. The outdoor multimedia installation will be located in Melvin Platz and can be visited from dusk until dawn.

For more information contact the Saint Vincent Gallery at 724-805-2107 or visit http://faceweb.stvincent.edu/academics/finearts/gallery.html.

In photo:  The sisters of James Byrd Jr., who was dragged to death by racists in Texas, gather for a “family” portrait in front of their brother’s grave.

Return to News Releases