Acclaimed photographer and 1994 alumnus Daniel Weiss returns to campus for a three-day visit Oct. 14 to 16 to present to share his work and expertise, including sharing his “Holocaust Survivor Portrait Series” in the Penfield Library lobby.

A Manhattan-based wedding and commercial photographer whose past clients include Red Bull, People Magazine and ABC News, Weiss was inspired to create the portrait series after hearing Holocaust survivor and educator Irving Roth speak in 2016 at a Long Island synagogue. 

“I was blown away by his energy, and the notion hit me that, unlike what I expected — a very sad, depressed, downtrodden victim — was this real champion of life,” Weiss said on the Tiffinbox podcast, “Survivors of the Holocaust: Danny Weiss’ Visual Tribute.” “This person had a powerful life force, and the project just started with me just wanting to [photograph] him.”

After the initial portrait of Roth, Weiss spent three years photographing and interviewing 18 survivors from Europe, creating close, direct portraits meant to carry the message of “remember me.” His large-scale portraits have been displayed at libraries, Jewish community centers and the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County. 

Supported by an ARTSwego grant, the Oswego visit will include classroom visits, a “Pizza with Professionals” session for photography students at 1 p.m. Oct. 14 in the Compass Career Studio and a public lecture titled “Photography, Passion and Possibilities" at 3 p.m. on Oct. 15 in Hewitt Hall ballroom, preceding the portrait exhibit’s 5 p.m. opening. 

The portraits — roughly 30 to 33 large canvases — will fill Penfield Library lobby’s first floor to create an accessible space for campus and community visitors, and one or two survivors featured in the exhibit also are expected to join via Zoom during the opening. 

Kelly Cullinan, the university box office manager who helped coordinate the visit, said the program also reflects the college’s effort to connect classroom learning with real-world stories. 

“He’s going to do an artist talk that’s open to the public and to students just about his career and how you get some of these crazy shots,” she said. “I think this is aspirational. It takes a lot of saying yes to opportunities — that’s the message you tell students.”

The Oct. 15 program and exhibit are being presented in partnership with the Jewish Student Organization and the local Safe Haven Holocaust Refugee Shelteer Museum. The museum preserves the story of 982 European refugees, most of whom were Jewish, housed at Fort Ontario in Oswego from 1944 to 1946, representing the only World War II refugee shelter in the United States. 

Involving the museum in Weiss’s visit showcases Oswego’s unique place in Holocaust history and connects the portrait series to a local legacy of refuge and survival, organizers said. 

Cullinan said she hopes the event not only brings the community together but also provides a message of inclusion to Jewish students that their heritage is recognized and valued on campus. “I would hope that Jewish students feel that they belong here and that there’s a history of many alumni that also feel the same way,” she said. 

-- Written by Emma Kerl of the Class of 2026