Lafayette Crosses Focus Of Photography Exhibit At Library

LAFAYETTE, CA — The City of Lafayette’s Public Art Committee selected “Every Day is Memorial Day,” a collection of nine black and white photographs of the Lafayette Crosses by East Bay photographer Jeff Heyman, for an exhibit at the Lafayette Library’s Public Art Gallery through summer.

“Every Day is Memorial Day” focuses on the somber experience of walking among the Lafayette Crosses — or Lafayette Hillside Memorial — and contemplating the lives lost during war. Heyman found inspiration for the photographs from his own experience in war zones while he served with United Nations Peacekeeping.

“These photographs of the Lafayette Crosses really capture for me the feeling of forgotten wars and vanished lives,” Heyman said. “We should never forget war and those we have lost – in a very real way every day is Memorial Day.”

“Every Day is Memorial Day” runs May 4 through Aug. 30. An opening reception and artist’s talk are planned from 6 p.m. until 7 p.m. Monday, May 22, prior to the Lafayette City Council Meeting. The Public Art Gallery exhibit is on display in the Don Tatzin Community Hall at the Lafayette Library and Learning Center, 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette. For hours, please call the library at 925-385-2280.

Heyman first took photography classes at San Ramon Valley High School in Danville, then went on to earn a degree in fine art photography from San Francisco State University. He studied under photographers Catherine Wagner, Don Worth, Jack Welpott and Melanie Walker, and painters Paul Pratchenko and Robert Bechtle.

“Every Day is Memorial Day” is Heyman’s third solo exhibit.