Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Fawn Alban.
Hi Rachel Fawn, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am a photographer, museum educator, and a public artist. I love many art forms, but I have a special passion for public art. One of the most rewarding aspects of my photography practice is documenting public artists, and I have also been a lead artist on mural projects in Newark, NJ and in New York City.
Like many photographers, I have been obsessed with taking pictures since I was a child. In 2013, I started becoming intentional about my photography practice when I created a series of articles documenting 5pointz Art Center for a website called Untapped Cities (now UntappedNewYork.com ). Curated by the artist Meres One and run by volunteers, 5Pointz was a historic building in Queens that was covered with beautiful murals by legends of graffiti, international street artists, local artists, and people learning how to spray paint for the first time. I made a lot of friends at 5Pointz and brought my family to see it. My cat Baxter used to live there! I rescued Baxter after the property owner eventually demolished the 5Pointz building to develop luxury apartments.
In 2014, I met my now-husband and moved to Newark, NJ. In 2021, I was hired by Audible Inc. to document their new public art program. Called the Newark Artist Collaboration (NAC), a cohort of local artists were invited to create public artworks and installations in and around Audible’s headquarters in Newark as people emerged from the pandemic and returned to in-person life. As the project photographer, I did headshots and artist portraits, documented artists in action, and photographed completed art installations. NAC completely changed my career and photography practice and career. Since then, I document a lot of the public art projects and collaborate with a lot of different artists. Newark has a fantastic arts scene and I feel very grateful to have found a role in it.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Ha! Nothing has been smooth about my road. Some of the struggles have been balancing teaching work with photography, losing 100% of my teaching work at the start of the pandemic, and eventually finding paying photography clients as my practice evolved from a hobby to a business. To be honest, I also had some self-doubt and imposter syndrome to wrestle with.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a photographer, museum educator, and public artist. As a photographer, I specialize in artwork documentation, artist portraits, and events. As a museum educator and administrator, I currently work with MoMA, The Jewish Museum, and Paul Robeson Galleries.
I am very proud of my public art practice, which involves making large scale photomurals developed during creative art-making workshops with local communities. <font face=”Times New Roman, sans-serif”>In 2023, I created a photomural at Coler Rehabilitation and Nursing Care Hospital, Roosevelt Island, NY for the NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine Program. As part of the process to create this mural, I visited Coler weekly to engage participants in hands-on photography projects including cell phone photography, editing, and digital printing. In the fourth week, everyone was invited to make their own art while I did the photo portraits for the mural using professional lighting and a makeshift backdrop. Then in</font> 2024, artist Armisey Smith and I co-created “The Golden Life” public art project in Newark, created in collaboration with Project For Empty Space, the City’s Division of Arts and Culture, and supported by Bloomberg Philanthropies. This multi-facade mural features large scale portraits of 14 girls and women of all ages, who live or work in the neighborhoods near the intersection. What sets these murals apart from others is the focus on community engagement. It was important us that people felt like they were active participants in the making of public art in their communities. Also, the deliberate use of black and white photography sets them apart.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
My advice on networking is to show up, show love, and mean it! What has worked for me is taking the time to learn about people’s work and getting to know them. Showing up for them and cheering them on. Being consistent and authentic about it all.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.rachelfawnalban.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fawn_photos/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelfawnalban/
Image Credits
Rachel Fawn Alban and Armisey Smith in front of Golden Life Mural – Photo by Randy Hayes Harris Rachel Fawn Alban in front of mural at Coler Hospital – Photo by Lois Stavsky All other photos by Rachel Fawn Alban