Boston Athenaeum looking to identify subjects of ‘Where’s Boston’ photo exhibit

It s Sunday afternoon in Franklin Park The soothing sounds of a man playing the saxophone fill the air A group of young Black men sit in calm communion while the photographer stays hidden just behind the lens He s able to enter the world of a person on the street or a child on a window but enter it without imposing himself Boston Athenaeum curator Lauren Graves commented But Graves says the photograph reveals something even more Photographer Constantine Manos also provides a snapshot into Boston s segregated shared spaces in the s I think he s questioning access to shared city spaces and that s prevalent in a lot of the masses spaces that he s photographing Graves declared Frame by frame Manos series Where s Boston captures a complicated city The black and white photographs were first displayed as part of Boston s bicentennial celebration reflecting the city s diversity while also shedding light on its racial and economic tensions Manos photographed the images in the midst of Boston s bussing situation a period of intense racial conflict stemming from the court ordered desegregation of Boston s schools His commitment to photographing Boston in all its complications at that time is why the photographs continue to strike me every time I look at them Graves noted The images will be part of a new exhibit at the Athenaeum in Curators are working to identify the people in the photographs and record an oral history to understand more about how these images were captured and dive deeper into Boston s identity then and now Staff from the Athenaeum have been setting up shop at different Boston Citizens Library branches asking people if they recognize anyone in the photos Curators have also been working with local historical societies to track down Manos muses Graves says the conversations she s had paint a clearer picture of city life in the s and how much has changed She spoke to the Moran family who Manos photographed before their daughter s baptism in South Boston Despite the joyful and intimate celebration the family describes a violent and unsafe neighborhood forcing them to leave a region they once called home Another photograph in the series of distinct cultural spaces shows a father looking lovingly at his son at the Beth Pinchas Chassidic Center in Brookline Graves interviewed the young boy pictured decades later who is now a Rabbi and the director of Hillel at Tufts University To connect with people who have such visceral memories that are evoked by the photographs it s heartening to see how much these images are able to connect with people Graves revealed Recording the oral histories provided additional context to correspond with the powerful photographs For example Graves says Manos seemingly innocuous photo of a firefighter resting against a fire truck after battling a blaze on Symphony Road in Fenway is also rooted in activism Upon further research I realized there was a lot of arson for profit happening in the Fenway neighborhood and there was a lot of tenant organization to stop this from happening Graves commented During the s landlords in Boston would often set their own properties on fire to collect insurance money A group of residents on Symphony Road brought their own evidence to the State Attorney General leading to an scrutiny and ultimately arrests So when you really look at his images and dig into them there s countless layers that also show Boston as a place of activism Graves commented As a place where people and communities were coming together to aid one another As Boston celebrates years curators want to use this time to look back at the city s history to shape its future We feel like it s a nice time to think back years and reminisce Graves mentioned It s also a time to think about what has changed what hasn t changed over the last years and what do we want for the city s future Athenaeum staff will be at The Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Locality Center in Dorchester on Thursday at a m showing the photographs The oral histories will be archived on the Boston Athenaeum s website and the exhibit will open in June of for six months