Gephardt’s black-and-white photography exhibition, which seeks to advance religious and cultural understanding, shows Muslim-Americans in their daily lives. “My goal for this project is to try to understand and document the intersection between ‘Muslim’ and ‘American,’ since the latter part of this community’s identity is often forgotten,” the artist said. “My hope is that this photo series can encourage a dialogue between Muslims and non-Muslims in America that attempts to erase the boundaries that engender a sense of ‘them’ and begin to foster a sense of ‘us.’”

Gerhardt, who was born in Georgia and grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, gravitated toward photography while studying at the College of the Holy Cross, in Worcester, Mass. After receiving his bachelor’s in anthropology/sociology, he earned an MFA in photography from the Lesley University College of Art and Design in Boston. “Muslim American/American Muslim” has been exhibited at colleges throughout the U.S. Gerhardt’s works have also been in numerous solo and group exhibitions in Canada and Europe, and his photography is in a number of private collections. He has lived and worked in New York since 1999.