Transitions—Payne Avenue: Portrait of a Community

Transitions—Payne Avenue: Portrait of a Community

Photography exhibition by Stephan Kistler featuring the people and sights of historic Payne Avenue

The setting is Payne Avenue in St. Paul, a neighborhood that had once been a thriving commercial center and community within a larger city, and still retains that sense of ‘Main Street’ in a smaller town. Immigrants from Sweden and Italy had established the neighborhood. Today, a rich mix of ethnic groups, and more recent immigrants, favor Payne Avenue as their home, work place, and commerce destination. The Avenue has endured a number of economic setbacks due to major plant closings nearby and, on the surface, shows many signs of its challenges. However, there is also a distinct sense of energy bringing about change and revival. It was that promise of imminent transformation that motivated St. Paul photographer Stephan Kistler to go out with his camera, starting out in the middle of this past winter, to probe a bit deeper.

The faces and scenes assemble into a portrait of a community, providing unique insights into the social fabric of the Payne Avenue neighborhood. The many transitions are written into the photographs and their stories of its people, businesses and buildings. The contemporary images are straight up, honest and probing, with a caring and compassionate intention: to inspire viewers to become agents and enablers of positive transitions. 



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