Please join us for the First Friday opening of the exhibition Place de la République from 6-9pm.

Place de la République, Thomas Boivin

In his series Place de la République, Thomas Boivin presents a collective portrait of youth, vibrancy, and hope found in the famous Paris square. Over a period of four years starting in 2018, Boivin photographed a wide array of young people, asking them to be present briefly for his 4 x 5 camera, stopping for a moment out of time. The portraits feel direct, immediate, intimate, timeless, and timely: In 2026, as many countries grapple with loss of individual freedoms, Boivin’s portraits hit home as a reminder that people make a place.

Boivin writes of making the series, “As the world seemed to grow more tense with each passing day, I found myself turning to youth, those on the threshold of adulthood. In their presence I glimpsed the shape of the society to come, and through them I discovered a renewed faith in our capacity to endure and to overcome the frailties of our time."

The exhibition will be on view in Aurora’s Main Gallery until August 21.

Where Does That Flower Bloom, COnner Gordon

Also on view for First Friday in Aurora’s Efroymson Gallery: Part exploration of loss and part environmental inquiry, Where Does That Flower Bloom traces Conner Gordon’s process of coming to terms with the Northern Indiana landscape of his childhood and the memories it contains. By interweaving photographs of Winona Lake with his grandmother's family snapshots, Gordon seeks to understand what it means to relate to a place and a person defined by loss, nostalgia, and the shadow of environmental degradation threatening to wash it all away.

Where Does That Flower Bloom was published as a hand-made, cloth bound book in 2025. Beautifully printed at Composite Press, a student-staffed printing press and bindery at Oregon State University, this intimate book features an elegant design, inserts, and a poem by the artist. A small number of books will be on hand for June First Friday, and the artist will also be present to sign books and talk about the work.