Visit the new gallery space in the Department of Rare Books, Special Collections (RBSCP), and Preservation, which currently features photographs by Quajay Donnell, a Rochester, NY-based photographer and writer with a passion for public art and capturing his community.

Part of a much larger acquisition of 129 images, Donnell’s photographs are now part of RBSCP’s permanent collection. These photographs offer insight into how local artists have interpreted and shared the image of Frederick Douglass in public spaces throughout the city of Rochester.

Donnell has been published in Departures Magazine, The Washington Post, The Waterbury Observer (Waterbury, CT), CITY (Rochester, NY), The Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY), and 585 Magazine (Rochester, NY) and seen on WXXI (Rochester, NY).

Donnell is a crew member and photographer for WALL\THERAPY and staff photographer for Roc Paint Division. He's the recipient of the 2020 George Eastman Museum Award for the Rochester Contemporary Art Center’s 30th Annual Members Exhibition. His work was featured in the Memorial Art Gallery's 67th Rochester-Finger Lakes Exhibition.