From 2:00 PM until 5:00 PM

At AAHMSNJ Atlantic City (Noyes Arts Garage of Stockton University)

2200 Fairmount Avenue, Atlantic City, NJ 08401

Join us for the opening reception for AAHMSNJ’s newest exhibit, Hotel Brotherhood, a striking black‑and‑white photography exhibit by veteran photographer Ronald Watkins. It offers an intimate look at Philadelphia’s overlooked and disenfranchised communities.

Photography has long been Watkins’ vocation, filling both his professional and personal life. Shortly after relocating to Philadelphia in the late 1960s, he became deeply aware of the city’s growing population of poor and marginalized residents. From 1968 to 1978, Watkins immersed himself in some of Philadelphia’s toughest neighborhoods, speaking with residents and asking permission to photograph them. He often reflects that these conversations, honest, vulnerable, and human, remain among the most meaningful experiences of his life.

“What Ronald Watkins captured is not just history, it’s humanity. Hotel Brotherhood reveals the quiet strength, vulnerability, and dignity of people too often overlooked. His photographs don’t simply document a decade in Philadelphia; they invite us into moments of connection that still resonate today. This exhibit is a testament to the power of bearing witness with compassion.”

~Casey Bell, Exhibit Curator

Learn more about the exhibit.