What does freedom mean to you? As the United States celebrates its semiquincentennial, Steven CW Taylor is probing this question in his exhibition, “UNBOUND: A Visual Study on the Nature of Freedom.” The exhibition runs from July through October 2026 at the Ubuntu Fine Art Gallery in Germantown. The opening reception is scheduled for July 3 from 4 to 7 pm.

Taylor, who owns and operates the photography gallery, said the exhibition will display photographs he took during several trips to Kenya in 2019 and 2020. But the idea for the exhibition ultimately grew out of his own reflections on freedom as a Black American.

“Coming up on 250 years, I think the country is in a similar position that I am, wrestling with the tension that Independence Day embodies,” he said.

Taylor believes his photography abroad encapsulates the search for freedom at home. He said he chose Kenya, “very specifically, because it’s where I spent a lot of real introspective time. Of the work that I have, it’s what spoke best to the idea of being unbound.”

Taylor’s favorite photograph from the exhibit is a night sky in Kenya — a moment when he felt unbound and free. In the photograph, the bright orange Milky Way is juxtaposed against the silhouettes of tree branches in the corners.

“A city boy, like me, looks up and sees the Milky Way with his naked eye, engulfed by the stars from horizon to horizon. It felt like somebody put me in a snow globe and shook me up,” he recalled.

However, Taylor said the goal of “UNBOUND” is not to offer his opinion of what freedom means. Rather, he invites his audience to share, discuss and contemplate freedom together.

This idea of shared discussion reflects the namesake of his gallery: Ubuntu, an ancient southern African philosophy that translates to “humanity to others” or “I am because you are.” It emphasizes connection, compassion and mutual respect. Taylor discovered Ubuntu during three trips to South Africa and has since used it to guide much of his work.

“This is the Ubuntu factor: You ain’t no different than these people,” Taylor said, gesturing at a photo he took of Kenyan boys jumping into the ocean. “These people ain’t no different than you. The only difference is where you were born.”

As Taylor developed the exhibition, he connected the ideas behind Ubuntu with other philosophies from around the world. In spring 2025, he discovered the Japanese concept of Ikigai, often translated as “reason for being.” Along with Ubuntu, it became one of the philosophical influences behind UNBOUND.

By combining Ubuntu, Ikigai, and his photography of Kenya, “UNBOUND” becomes a tapestry of cultures and ideas that come back to the same questions. “How do I live free? How do I live unbound?” Taylor asks.

Beginning July 3, gallery visitors can join him in considering the answers.

The Ubuntu Fine Art Gallery is located at 5423 Germantown Ave., www.ubuntufa.com.