Announcing "Counter Histories: Exhibition of Works by Christopher Gregory-Rivera, Abdo Shanan, Prasiit Sthapit, and Agata Szymanska-Medina"
Christopher Gregory-Rivera
On View: April 3 – June 26, 2024
Open Hours: Wednesdays 4–6 PM
Location: Magnum Foundation | 59 East 4th St, 7W | New York, NY 10003
What creative possibilities are offered by the gaps, absences, and silences in historical records?
Magnum Foundation is pleased to present an upcoming exhibition of work from our Counter Histories Initiative, featuring four photographers who excavate records of state surveillance, national mythologies, and revolutionary histories—and the stories they omit.
In Puerto Rico, Christopher Gregory-Rivera uncovers the hidden stories found in government files, documenting decades of surveillance against independence activists. In Poland, Agata Szymanska-Medina makes visible the apparatus of state power in the present, exposing a nationalist party’s campaign to undermine an independent judiciary. In Nepal, Prasiit Sthapit preserves a history of activism against the state, collecting the stories of musicians who energized the country’s Maoist revolution. And in Algeria, Abdo Shanan fills gaps in the national record, responding to a public iconography dominated by independence heroes with his own archive of ordinary citizens.
Together, they offer a wide range of approaches that challenge the power structures embedded in archives and suggest the radical possibilities of alternative narratives.
All four artists are grantees of Magnum Foundation’s Counter Histories Initiative supporting projects that revisit and reframe the past in the context of the present, offering an expanded and collaborative approach to historical inquiry and photographic storytelling.
This exhibition accompanies the Spring 2024 issue of Aperture magazine, “Counter Histories,” produced in collaboration with the Magnum Foundation. A related exhibition is on view at the Center for Photography at Woodstock from March 23 to May 26, 2024.
About the featured projects:
Christopher Gregory-Rivera
From the 1940’s until 1987 the Puerto Rican Police–in collaboration with the FBI and CIA—watched, intimidated, and in some cases murdered political activists on the island. When the unit was dismantled, the original surveillance files were returned directly to the victims, whole and unredacted. Las Carpetas offers a window into forbidden political history and a chance at a national truth and reconciliation process.
Abdo Shanan
The Right To A Memory is an attempt to build a counter narrative to a national narrative that regards collective memory as a state-owned commodity: bringing private family photos to the public to create an inclusive narrative with which individuals in Algerian society could identify.
Prasiit Sthapit
Moonsongs for Earth is an exploration of the role of music during and after the decade-long war in Nepal. Through video and portraiture, Sthapit documents Maoist musicians, whose songs of revolution envisioned a just, egalitarian society—and whose dreams would ultimately be betrayed.
Agata Szymanska-Medina
The “Good” Change traces the dismantling of the rule of law in Poland, and examines those who defend it: judges persecuted by the PiS political party. They represent the last bastion of hope in the struggle not only for an independent judiciary, but also for a progressive future in Poland.
Magnum Foundation is in an elevator building and has a restroom that is wheelchair accessible and gender-neutral. For access requests or questions, please contact events@magnumfoundation.org. As a small team, we will better be able to respond to requests made at least one week in advance. Masks are currently appreciated, but not required.
Magnum Foundation expands creativity and diversity in visual storytelling, activating new audiences and ideas through the innovative use of images. Through grant making, mentorship, and creative collaborations, we partner with socially engaged imagemakers exploring new models for storytelling.
Magnum Foundation’s Counter Histories Initiative is supported by The Henry Luce Foundation. Additional support for Counter Histories is provided by The Fledgling Fund, the Phillip and Edith Leonian Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon/ACLS Early Career Fellowships, the William Talbott Hillman Foundation, and Columbia University’s Brown Institute for Media Innovation.