Architecture Exposed

Starlight Studio & Art Gallery, an art program for adults with disabilities, teamed up with Preservation Buffalo Niagara and CEPA Gallery to discover and explore the architectural treasures of Buffalo.

Buffalo City Hall, Buffalo Savings Bank, St. Antonio’s Church, Blessed Trinity Church, The Central Terminal and the Grain Elevators were some of the historic highlights. In addition many obscure monuments to Buffalo’s prosperous past were visited. Abandoned and in disrepair, but evocatively testifying to the days of civic and industrial prosperity, vacated structures of factories, warehouses, hotels and pubs in the First Ward, Inner Harbor, along Main St., Johnson Park, Prospect and Delaware Avenue were examined. A trip to Frank Lloyd Wright’s Darwin Martin House also occurred and the group witnessed the restored beauty of one of the City’s most notable landmarks.

With cameras in hand, the 15 participants recorded their sightings while being shown how to explore the art form of the photographic process. This experience resulted in a body of pictures which show off the sites, and has also changed the participants’ relationship with their surroundings, adding a sense of pride and belonging to Buffalo’s past and present.

With many thanks to the Max and Victoria Dreyfus Fund for supporting this project.