Isa Leshko

Allowed to Grow Old
May 3 – June 7

Three framed photographs hanging on a well-lit gallery wall, each displaying black and white images. The serene ambiance emphasizes the art's detail and texture.
Art gallery interior featuring two black and white photographs framed and hung on beige walls, with a display podium holding a book in the center of the room.
An art gallery interior with a minimalist design, featuring four framed black and white photographs on white walls, and a display case in the corner. The room has wooden flooring and soft lighting.
An art gallery wall with four framed artworks in a row, each depicting botanical illustrations, under soft gallery lighting. An informational plaque is beside them.
A black cow with prominent white-tipped horns lies down on straw against a wooden backdrop, peacefully resting with eyes half-closed.
A black and white photo of a large turkey with its tail feathers fully spread, standing on straw inside a wooden enclosure.
A grayscale image of a horse with a shiny coat and flowing mane, partially illuminated, peeking out from a shadowed stable background.
A black and white image of a donkey with textured fur, capturing a detailed close-up of its face and ears against a blurred background.
A black and white cow lying down on straw in a dimly lit area, looking calmly towards the camera.
A black and white photo of a pig with a thick, shaggy white coat, sitting near a wooden fence and looking directly at the camera.
A thin brown horse standing under a tree, peering over a farm fence, in a sepia-toned photograph.
A monochrome photo of an angora goat with long, curly fleece, sitting comfortably on hay inside a barn.
A black and white photo of a goat with floppy ears and horns, resting on grass by a wire fence, looking directly at the camera.

Press Release

Richard Levy Gallery is pleased to present Allowed to Grow Old, a selection of photographs by Isa Leshko. For nearly a decade, Leshko visited sanctuaries across America to create intimate photographic portraits of geriatric farm animals. She began this series shortly after caring for her mother who had Alzheimer’s disease. The experience had a profound effect on her and forced her to confront her mortality. Leshko started photographing geriatric animals in order to take an unflinching look at her fear of aging. After she met rescued farm animals and heard their stories, she became passionate advocate for these animals.

Leshko’s first monograph, Allowed to Grow Old was released this April by University of Chicago Press. The book has received advanced praise from Moby, J. M. Coetzee, Carl Safina, and Peter Singer, and received early press coverage in the London Observer and Blouin Art Info. In her essay for Allowed to Grow Old, curator Anne Wilkes Tucker writes: “[Leshko] regards her pictures of animals as portraits with all the attributes of the genre….Her conviction that these subjects are worthy of the viewers’ consideration is consummated in the care she takes to make tonally rich, meticulously printed, and visually seductive prints from her negatives.”

Leshko will sign her new book at the gallery reception on May 3rd.

Leshko has received fellowships from the Bogliasco Foundation, the Culture & Animals Foundation, the Houston Center for Photography, the Millay Colony for the Arts, and the Silver Eye Center for Photography. Her prints are in numerous private and public collections, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Fidelity Investments, and the Boston Public Library.

High-resolution images are available on request. Follow us on Instagram and Facebook: @levygallery  @isaleshko #allowedtogrowold  #isaleshko

Isa Leshko Book Signing and Artist Talk, Santa Fe: Saturday, May 4, 4–6 pm: photo-eye bookstore

Dates: May 3–June 7, 2019
Reception: May 3, 5:30–8:30 pm
Hours: Tuesday–Saturday, 11 am–4 pm
Location: 514 Central Avenue SW, Albuquerque, NM 87102
Contact: 505.766.9888, info@levygallery.com, www.levygallery.com @levygallery

Artwork and Information
Isa Leshko