The Jennie Jones Photography Collection
Photographer Jennie Jones. Portrait by Herb Ascherman.
BROWSE ALL ITEMS IN THIS COLLECTION
Experience Cleveland's architectural evolution through the lens of acclaimed photographer Jennie Jones. This collection of over 27,000 stunning images and related materials spans over three decades of her work, which captured the buildings, the builders, and the creative spirit of this city.
Construction, renewal, transformation, and demise: Jones documented every stage of change. From the rise of Society Tower and Jacobs Field to the restoration of Terminal Tower and the Allen Theatre, the expansion of the Cleveland Botanical Garden, and the demolition of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers building, her photographs reveal the artistry of architecture and the skill of the local builders and workers who shaped Cleveland's skyline.
Personally curated and donated by Jennie Jones, this collection represents the culmination of her lifelong dedication to documenting Cleveland's built heritage. We're honored that she chose the Michael Schwartz Library, home of Cleveland Memory, as the repository for her life's work, and we're delighted that she has been named a recipient of the 2025 Cleveland Arts Prize.
“Her work is a priceless record of Cleveland’s heritage of construction and design. She is a creative artist with strong individual aesthetics who has dedicated her life to sharing the beauty of Cleveland with the world.”
—Arnold Berke, Preservation Magazine
The collection includes negatives, transparencies, proofs, prints, books, periodicals, and audiovisual materials that showcase the depth of Jones’s career in both analog and digital photography. A small selection of images can be viewed online through Cleveland Memory, but the full collection, including original prints and negatives, may be viewed in person at the Michael Schwartz Library. To schedule a research appointment or request more information, please contact us.
Finding aid to the Jennie Jones CollectionVideo from the Artists' Archives of the Western Reserve
Photographer - Jennie Jones from Artists Archives on Vimeo.
About Jennie Jones and her work
Jennie Jones was born in Denver, Colorado, and moved to Cleveland in 1978. She initially used her photography in her art history lectures. However, in 1983, she took a significant step by opening her own studio focusing on architectural and urban landscape photography. Her work includes the documentation of most of the major Cleveland building projects of the latter decades of the 20th century, including TRW, Inc., Tower City Center, the old Post Office, Gateway and the east wing of the Cleveland Public Library.
As a photographic artist, Jones has focused on Cleveland's industrial landscape including the Flats and the Cuyahoga River, its bridges and industrial remnants. An evocative example can be found in her Night Series. Her photographic essays often depict the complex interactions of physical and intellectual labor, machinery, workflow and the architectural environment, particularly evident in her essays on the Cleveland Plain Dealer's printing and shipping facility and the Cleveland Clinic in its 75th year of operation.
Her architectural photography has appeared in World Architecture, Inland Architect, Forbes and Fortune Magazine as well as many local publications. Her work is displayed in many private, corporate and museum collections, including the Cleveland Clinic, TRW, Inc., The Plain Dealer, Progressive Insurance and the Cleveland Museum of Art. While technically retired, Jones continues to take on select projects, such as the documentation of the expansion of the Cleveland Museum of Art (2013).
A life member of the American Society of Media Photographers, she served as President of the Cleveland North Coast chapter and was a member of the national Board of Directors.
More about Jennie Jones from the Artists Archives of the Western Reserve
Books By Jennie Jones
Books authored or illustrated by Jennie Jones at the Michael Schwartz Library
Cleveland: Inside Outside: A Personal Photographic Journey (1981 – 2011)
In 1986, she published Cleveland: A Celebration In Color, which sold out two editions. Her second book Celebration II: Cleveland In Color was published in 1991.
