Builder Levy
“Photographer Builder Levy’s Appalachia USA (David R. Godine) does for today’s coal miners what Walker Evans did for sharecroppers and tenant farmers in the Dust Bowl.” —Vanity Fair
Selected Group Exhibitions
2016 Timescapes, New York at its Core, Museum of the City of New York, 1 photo Dancing Girls

2015 The I of the Camera, 12 Appalachia USA photographs, Flomenhaft Gallery, NYC

2014 17th Annual Friends of Friends Photography benefit exhibition/auction for Friends Without A Border, Metropolitan Pavilion, NYC

Atlanta Celebrates Photography benefit exhibition/auction, Mason Murer Fine Arts, Atlanta, GA (including a bidding war over my photo: Pigeon Cloud)

The Growth of a Collection, Part I: 1981-2001, Southeast Museum of Photography, Daytona Beach, FL

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Virginia Museum of Fine Art, Richmond, VA

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Evansville Museum, Evansville, IN

In the Streets: Photographs of Urban Spaces, John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, Sarasota, FL

2013 Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Spellman College, Atlanta, GA

Friends Without A Border, Benefit exhibition/auction, Metropolitan Pavilion, NYC

2013 Illuminators, O.K. Harris Works of Art, New York City

Arnika Dawkins Gallery, Affordable Art Fair, Metropolitan Pavillion, New York City

Civil Rights Photographs, 1956-1968, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, The College of Wooster Art Museum, Wooster, OH

2012–2013 The Segregation Story, Gordon Parks, and others, Arnika Dawkins Gallery, Atlanta, GA

2012 Coal + Ice Asia Society, curated by Susan Meiselas and Jeroen de Vries, Yixian International Photo Festival, Ming Dynasty Ancestral Hall, Anhui Province, China

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Figge Museum of Art, Davenport, IA

WBAI Benefit exhibition and auction, Stephen Kasher Gallery, NYC

Coal + Ice, Asia Society, curated by Susan Meiselas and Jeroen de Vries, Resnick Gallery, Doerr-Hosier Center, The Aspen Institute, Aspen, Colorado

A Choice of Weapons: The New Renaissance Artists Tribute to Gordon Parks, 1199 SEIU Bread & Roses Gallery, Curated by African Voices and SAVAE Gallery Review, Flomenhaft Gallery, New York City, NYC

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Everhart Museum, Scranton, PA

2011–2012 Mirrors and Reflections, curated by Evelyne Daitz with co-Curator Alison Bradley, Robert Anderson Gallery, 24 W. 57th Street, New York City

2011 Builder Levy, a featured exhibition (13 photographs) at the Arnika Dawkins Gallery (Black & White and Color) in conjunction with Atlanta Celebrates Photography, Atlanta, GA

Photo Folio, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston, Texas

Coal + Ice, Asia Society, Curated by Susan Meiselas and Jeroen de Vries, at Three Shadows Art Centre, Bejing, China

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, USC Fisher Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA

Portraits, Flomenhaft Gallery, N.Y.C.

AIPAD, (Levy’s platinum prints) at June Bateman Fine Art booth 425, NYC

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Newark Museum, Newark, NJ

Permanent Energy Resources, National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum, Leadville, Colorado

2010–2011 Appalachian Photographers Project, Carroll Reece Museum, Eastern Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, co-sponsored by the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts

2010 Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Williams College Museum of Art, Williamtown, MA

A Summer of Photography: Builder Levy, Carrie Mae Weems, Neil Folberg, Keily Anderson-Staley, Gerlovin & Gerlovina, Flomenhaft Gallery, NYC (Levy: 14 photos: Appalachia: ‘For Miners and Mountains’)

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Taubman Museum,Roanoke, VA

Summer Invitational, 9 photos of Coal Appalachia, OK Harris Works of Art, NYC

Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-68, curated by Julian Cox, Bronx Museum of the Arts, Bronx, NY

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Art Gallery of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

2009–2010 Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-68, curated by Julian Cox, Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, CA

A Summer of Photography: Builder Levy, Carrie Mae Weems, Neil Folberg, Keily Anderson-Staley, Gerlovin & Gerlovina, 14 Levy photos: Appalachia: ‘For Miners and Mountains’, Flomenhaft Gallery, NYC

2009 Holiday Exhibition, Flomenhaft Gallery Annex, NYC

Posing Beauty, curated by Deborah Willis, Tisch School of the Arts, NYU, NYC

Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-68, curated by Julian Cox, The Field Museum, Chicago, IL

Flomenhaft Salon 2009, Flomenhaft Gallery, Chelsea,NYC

The Story of the Supremes from the Mary Wilson Collection, Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, United Kingdom

The Story of the Supremes from the Mary Wilson Collection, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, United Kingdom

Dancing Black Across Modern America, Centre National del la Danse, Pantin Cedex, France

African-American Art and Life, 7 Levy photos, Flomenhaft Gallery, Chelsea, NYC

2008–2009 The Story of the Supremes from the Mary Wilson Collection, Grundy Art Gallery–Blackpool, United Kingdom

2008 Learn, Promote, Defend, Commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights, juried benefit exhibition & auction (12/10), for Center for Civil & Human Rights, Mason Murer Gallery, Atlanta, GA

Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-68, Curated by Julian Cox, Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Washington, DC

1968: Then and Now, curated by Deborah Willis, Nathan Cummings Foundation, Chelsea, N.Y.C. 8 photos

1968: Then and Now, curated by Deborah Willis, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, N.Y.C. 8 photos

Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-68, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA, Curated by Julian Cox, 3 photos

The Story of the Supremes from the Mary Wilson Collection, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, United Kingdom

The Fifth PAI Membership Photography Exhibition, National Arts Club, NYC

2007 Photo Review benefit Auction Preview exhibit, Yossi Millo Gallery North, NYC

Here in New York: Remembering 9/11, New York Historical Society, NYC

Summer Invitational, (10 NYC) Photos, OK Harris Works of Art N.Y.C.

That 70s Show, New York City in the 1970s, PowerHouse Arena Gallery, Brooklyn, NYC (5 photos)

2006–2007 Mongolia: Beyond Chinggis Khan, Rubin Museum of Art, NYC–14 photos

Tropicalism, Jersey City Museum, Jersey City, NJ

Wild Weird & Wonderful, A Little Gallery at 1125, Philadelphia, PA

2006 Photo Review Benefit Auction Preview exhibit, University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA

Photo New York, Benefit Auction Preview exhibit–Photo Review booth, Metropolitan Pavilian, NYC

2005 Photo Review benefit Auction and Preview, University of the Arts, Phila, PA

Photo Review Auction Preview exhibit, Sarah Morthland Gallery, NYC

2004
(permanent)
Appalachian Miner (Portfolio), Elkhorn Inn & Theatre, Landgraff, McDowell County, WV

2003 The Affordable Art Fair, June Bateman Gallery, Pier 92, NYC

A.R.T. Benefit Auction Exhibition, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

In Motion/Justice for All Women, 10th Anniversary Auction & Benefit, Sotheby’s, NYC

June Bateman Gallery, 12th International Los Angeles Photographic Exposition

2002–2003 Graver la lumière, La Reconquête d’un Instrument Perdu, Musée Jenisch, Vevey, Switzerland

2002 Vintage New York, June Bateman Gallery, 13 photos, NYC

Photography Show, Dragon Fly Gallery, Oak Bluffs, Marthaís Vineyard, MA Craven Gallery, West Tisbury, Martha’s Vineyard, MA

A.R.T. Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

2001 Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, University of the Arts, Phila PA

Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Sotheby’s, NYC

photo.soho, 3rd Biennial Exhibition/Auction, (on 5/30) ACE Programs for the Homeless, Exit Art, NYC

A.R.T. Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

Dressing for a New York City Childhood, Museum of the City of New York, NYC

2000 A.R.T. Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

1999 Taranto Collection, Taranto Gallery, NYC

A.R.T. Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

AIPAD Exposition, Camera Obscura Gallery Booth #126, NYC

Conversation Exhibition with painter Emma Amos, Art Resources Transfer, Chelsea, NYC

1998–1999 Eight Million Stories, New York City Centenniel, The New York Public Library, NYC

1998 AIPAD Exposition, Camera Obscura Gallery, NYC

Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Howard Greenberg Gallery, NYC

1997 AIPAD Exposition, Camera Obscura Gallery, NYC

Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Swann Galleries, NYC

1996 AIPAD Exposition, Camera Obscura Gallery, NYC

Masters of Photography, Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art, Loretto PA

The Art of Mongolia, Perry House Art Gallery, Alexandria VA

Der Soziale Blick (juried), ART Frankfurt ’96, Germany

Contemporary Photographs of the American South, Columbus Museum, Georgia

Winter Show, Goldstrom Gallery, NYC

1995 Holiday Show, E3 Gallery, NYC

Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA, also included in benefit exhibit & auction in 1996, 1994, 1991, and 1990

Museum of Mongolian History, Ulaanbaatar

Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Silver Eye Center for Photography, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts

1994 Empire Beyond the Great Wall, American Museum of Natural History, NYC.

Anniversary Celebration, Russell Lee & Builder Levy, Lafayette Miners Museum, Lafayette, CO

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, Stadtische Galerie, Oberhausen, Germany

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs, OGB Galerie, Graz, Austria

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs, Chamber of Labor, Vienna, Austria

1993 Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Center for Photography, Woodstock, NY

1992 Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Filderhalle, Leinfelden-Echterdingen, Germany

Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Silver Eye Center for Photography, Univ. of Pittsburgh, PA

Photo Review Benefit Auction Exhibition Preview, Nesbitt College of Design Arts, Drexel University, Philadelphia. PA

Recent Acquisitions, Marsh Gallery, Modlin Art Center, Univ. of Virginia, Richmond, VA

1989 Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, The Workers Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark

1988 Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, European Parliament, Strassbourg, France

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, VHS Galerie, Bremerhaven, Germany

1986 Black and White Photography, Recent Acquisitions, Brooklyn Museum, NYC

The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Orchard Gallery, Derry, Northern Ireland

The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Great Hall, Town Hall, Manchester, Great Britain

1985 The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Royal Festival Hall, London, Great Britain

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs, Orangterie, Kassel, Germany

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs University of Kassel, Germany

1984 Das Andre Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs, Galerie Q, Pforzheim, Germany

Das Andre Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Kampnagelfabrik, Hamburg, Germany

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos Festival Dell’ Unita Press Festival, Rome, Italy

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photos, Kulturhuset, Stockholm, Sweden

1983 Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, 30 Levy photographs, Kunsthalle Berlin, Germany

Das Andere Amerika/The Other America, Art and the Labor Movement in the United States, including 30 Levy photographs, Stadtische Galerie, Oberhausen, Germany

1981 10th International Press Photo Exhibition, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Photo Vision 81, (juried), Foto Gallery, NYC, Honorable Mention

1979 Photographers Forum, Center for Photography at Woodstock, New York

Fourth Annual Show and Auction, Cameravision Gallery, Los Angeles

American Vision, National Artists’ Alliance, East Galleries, New York University, NYC; 2 Honorable Mentions

Fragments and Details, Architectural Photographs, Marcuse Pfeifer Gallery, NYC

Miners Art Group, Reuther Library, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI

Miners Art Group, Southern West Virginia Community College, Logan, WV

Miners Art Group, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI

Miners Art Group, West Virginia Institute of Technology, Montgomery, WV

1978 Miners Art Group, West Virginia State Museum, Charleston, WV

Miners Art Group, Richard M. Daly Center, Chicago, IL

Rosenblum Collection, Queens Museum, Queens, NY

Rosenblum Collection, Port Washington Library, Port Washington, NY

XI International Festival of Youth and Students, U.S. Exhibit, International Circle of Young Artists, Havana, Cuba

Photographers Forum, Milwaukee Center of Photography, Milwaukee, WI

Life of the Appalachian Coal Miner (Portfolio), 2nd International Press Photography Exhibition, Riga, Latvia

Life of the Appalachian Coal Miner (Portfolio), 2nd International Press Photography Exhibition, Vilnus, Lithuania

Artwords and Bookwords, Los Angeles Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA

Artwords and Bookwords, Franklin Furnace, NYC

Artwords and Bookwords, Herron School of Art, Indianapolis, IN

Artwords and Bookwords, New Orleans Contemporary Art Center, New Orleans, LA

1977 New Talent, Marcuse Pfeifer Gallery, NYC

New Talent, Port Washington Library, New York

Life of the Appalachian Coal Miner (Portfolio), Awarded Third Prize and Prize of the Soviet Photo, 2nd International Press Photography Exhibition, House of Friendship, Moscow, U.S.S.R

African Americans, House of Friendship, Togliatti, U.S.S.R.

1976 African Americans, House of Journalism, Moscow, U.S.S.R.

African Americans, State University of Leningrad, U.S.S.R.

1975 Photographers Forum, Brooklyn Museum, NYC

Six Contemporary Artists, Union College, Schenectady, NY

1974 Soho Photo Gallery, NYC

Chile Emergency, O.K. Harris Gallery, NYC

1973 Tenth World Youth Festival, Berlin, German Democratic Republic

Society for Photographic Education, New York Public Theater, NYC

1969 Focus on Brooklyn, BACA, Brooklyn Museum, NYC

1968 Afro-American Arts, Brooklyn Museum, NYC

1966 Photographers Forum, Gallerias Norte Y Sur, Instituto Mexicano Norteamericano de Relaciones Culturales, A.C., Mexico

1964 Photographers Forum, Donnell Library, NYC