Photographer Penny Wolin to Discuss Jewish Book at UW’s American Heritage Center July 24

Photographer Penny Wolin will hold town-hall meetings at multiple venues throughout Wyoming -- including the University of Wyoming -- this summer to engage in dialogue about Jewish culture in the Cowboy State.

Wolin will kick off her tour at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 24, at UW’s American Heritage Center, located at 2111 E. Willet Drive. A book signing will follow at 7:45 p.m.

The core of her discussion will be her book, “Descendants of Light: American Photographers of Jewish Ancestry,” a visual encyclopedia of photography and Jewish life since the mid-1800s. This book was awarded the coveted Kirkus book prize for best independent nonfiction. During Wolin’s tour, she will discuss a multi-generational story of the intersection of Jewish culture, the founding vision of America and the roots of equality that have been so important to the development of Wyoming and the West.

Those who have questions about American Jewish culture, food, life, ancestry and anything else about Jewish civilization are welcome to attend. Wolin’s illustrated talk will engage the audience in common themes meant to heal divided hearts.

This project is sponsored, in part, by the Wyoming Humanities Council to promote community-involved discussions of Wyoming’s multiple cultures. Additionally, with private sponsorship, the Wyoming State Library has acquired 120 copies of “Descendants of Light” books that are being placed as reference material in all public libraries throughout the state.

Other town hall sponsors are the Moby Bookmobile in Fort Washakie, Crazy Woman Creek Press in Cheyenne, Wyoming State Libraries, and Phyllis and Jason Bloomberg, of Cheyenne.

To help create a better understanding among Wyoming’s different ethnicities and faiths, Wolin will present a selection of her photographs and moderate discussions at multiple venues throughout Wyoming this summer.

The schedule is as follows:

-- Saratoga Public Library: Friday, July 25, 6:30 p.m.

-- Riverton Public Library: Monday, July 28, 6:30 p.m.

-- Lander Public Library: Tuesday, July 29, 6:30 p.m.

-- Natrona Public Library in Casper: Monday, Aug. 4, 6 p.m.

-- Uinta County Public Library in Evanston: Tuesday, Aug. 5, 5:30 p.m.

Wolin’s previous journey into American Jewish life is “The Jews of Wyoming: Fringe of the Diaspora.” A solo exhibition of this work was mounted at the Smithsonian Institution and the rotunda of the Wyoming State Capitol, and it was made into a fascinating book. These two documents are considered unique contributions to understanding of American Jewry as Jews embrace and enhance the vast mosaic of the United States.

Wolin is a native-born Wyomingite, photographer, visual anthropologist and the author of four monographs of photography. Her books include “Guest Register”; “Descendants of Light: American Photographers of Jewish Ancestry”; “The Jews of Wyoming: Fringe of the Diaspora”; and “Jackalopes, Cowboys and Coalmines: Energy Development in Wyoming.”

She has exhibited solo at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History and is the recipient of multiple grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Her photographs are held in such collections as the Smithsonian American Art Museum; The New York Public Library; Harvard University; Los Angeles County Museum of Art; the Layton Art Collection at the Milwaukee Art Museum; and the Wyoming State Museum.

Her editorial portraits of actors, activists, musicians and thinkers have appeared in Condé Nast Traveler, Esquire, Forbes, Rolling Stone, The New York Times and Vanity Fair. Wolin was a contract photographer for LIFE Magazine; was awarded a directing fellowship to the American Film Institute, Center for Advanced Film & Television Studies; and was program director for the Sonoma Valley Film Festival. Based in Los Angeles and Sonoma County, Wolin is an adjunct professor teaching visual literacy through the analysis and practice of photography and film.