Work of N. Jay Jaffee

Hybrid Meeting (See Instructions/Get Zoom Link Emailed)

United Parish of Auburndale

64 Hancock Street

Auburndale, MA

N. Jay Jaffee in Focus: New York Photographs 1947–1990

This presentation will explore the life and work of N. Jay Jaffee (1921–1979), a New York City-born photographer who captured the lives of ordinary (and sometimes famous) people, city streets and country landscapes, political movements, and private moments. Jaffee’s photographs are in the collections of major museums and institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Smithsonian American Art Museum, New York Public Library, Center for Brooklyn History, and the Museum of Fine Arts Boston.

Beginning in the 1940s, Jaffee began photographing the Brooklyn neighborhoods in which he grew up, and soon expanded into New York's other boroughs. He attended classes taught by Sid Grossman, of the legendary Photo League, and met with Edward Steichen, then curator of photography at the Museum of Modern Art.

Jaffee’s photographs also reflect his lifelong commitment to social justice. Janie Welker, who curated a 50-year retrospective of his work, commented, “His photographs. . .are exquisite, enduring expositions of lights and shadow, visual textures in balanced tension. They are also filled with wit and humor, and a profound understanding of the ironies in all of our lives.”