Where Does That Flower Bloom

Where Does That Flower Bloom
Conner Gordon

May 1-June 19, 2026
Opening Reception: May 1, 6-9pm
Free and open to the public

Aurora PhotoCenter, Efroymson Gallery
1125 Brookside Avenue, Suite C9, Indianapolis

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.

Since the 1900s, Winona Lake has been a popular destination for its idyllic waters and nature surrounding the small village of Winona. In 2015 contaminated water used to fight a fire at Indiana’s Warsaw Chemical Company spilled into nearby Winona Lake — one in a series of environmental shocks that have played a part in diminishing the lake’s pristine condition. In Where Does That Flower Bloom, Gordon intertwines personal history with that of the lake, writing, “The spill occurred a few hundred meters from my grandparents’ home, a cottage built by my grandfather with tall windows and an overhang roof. I spent many summers there, swimming in the seaweed-ribboned water beyond the front yard. My grandmother had lived on Winona for much of her life, teaching elementary school and playing church organ until her death from breast cancer in 2003. My family often wondered whether her illness could be traced back to the factories ringing the lake’s northern shore.”

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 during the exhibition’s opening on May 1, and the artist will also be present to sign books during the opening.

Conner Gordon is a Kansas-based artist exploring photography as unreliable narration. He has exhibited work throughout the United States and has self-published four photobooks. In 2019, he received a Fulbright Research Grant to Serbia. He holds an MFA in art from the University of Oregon and is currently Lecturer in Photography at Washburn University.

Annual operating support for Aurora PhotoCenter provided by the City of Indianapolis through the Indy Arts Council. Additional annual support provided by the Efroymson Family Fund, Joy of Giving Something Foundation, Inc., Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation, Indiana Arts Commission, Aurora Members, and donors who believe in Aurora’s mission.