Artist Bio:

Trained at the International Center of Photography, Ilene came to the a career behind the lens after a studious tenure in Education Reform via Teach For America. Naturally easy around children and families, Ilene’s true photographic niche is the photographic essay. Capturing the essence of time and place has become a huge influence on Ilene’s body of work, specifically her current project on the re-gentrification of Harlem entitled, “Faces of Harlem.”

Always a California Girl, Ilene shares her time between Harlem and Los Angeles.

Faces of Harlem is a ongoing collection of environmental portraits capturing the re-gentrification of Harlem. This project was conceived by Ilene Squires Photography in the Fall of 2010, though it was years in the making drawing from the likes of legendary photographers James Van Der Zee, Gordon Parks and Mary Ellen Mark. Faces of Harlem captures the essence of the new class of Harlemites; it is a visual journey where old school intersects with urban chic. The subjects in this project are both native Harlemites and fellow transplants, of various age groups and economic brackets.