Built in the Bronx:
15 Years of the Bronx Documentary Center
Opening Reception
Thursday, October 1 • 6-9 PM
RSVP
On View
October 1-30, 2026
Gallery hours:
Thur-Fri 3-7 PM
Sat 1-5 PM
BDC Main
614 Courtlandt Ave.
Bronx, NY 10451
For 15 years, the Bronx Documentary Center has brought together photographers of different ages and backgrounds to document their lives, families and communities.
Curated by Michael Kamber and Alexa Pacheco
Header image:
© Alejandro Flores
Built in the Bronx presents work created through the BDC Youth Photo League, Senior Photo League and adult education programs, alongside community portraits and long-term documentary projects developed at the BDC. Photographs from the Jerome Avenue Workers Project and work made in Claremont Village reflect the people, neighborhoods and histories that have shaped the Center’s first 15 years.
The exhibition also highlights former adult education students who have gone on to build careers in photography, demonstrating how access to instruction, mentorship and a supportive creative community can continue to influence a photographer’s life and work.
From young people learning to use a camera for the first time to older adults drawing on decades of experience, these photographers offer distinct perspectives on the Bronx and the wider world. Together, their images form an intergenerational record of everyday life, of people and places, change and continuity, challenges and celebrations.
The exhibition reflects the BDC’s belief that documentary photography should not only represent a community, but give people the tools and support to tell their own stories.
© Maya Sanchez, YPL student
© Ami Camara, YPL student
The BDC’s programming is made possible by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Foundation support is provided by the Clif Family Foundation, H.T. Ewald Foundation, Charles D. Fleischman Charitable Trust, Stanley Greene Foundation, Hillman Family Foundation, Ford Foundation, Four Friends Foundation, Chris Hondros Fund, Jerome Foundation, Joy of Giving Something, Phillip and Edith Leonian Foundation, Jonathan Logan Family Foundation, Lawrence Foundation, Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, McMullan/O’Connor Family Fund, Peck Foundation, Pinkerton Foundation, Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation Foundation, Scherman Foundation, The van Agtmael Family Charitable Fund, and Hyde and Watson Foundation.
BDC corporate partners include Adobe, BronxCare Health System, Fujifilm, and Montefiore Health System.