Englehardt puts photos on display

River Downs director of publicity John Englehardt is an accomplished equine photographer, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that he is putting a collection of his photographs on exhibit at a Cincinnati restaurant. The one-man show, titled "Seen and Unseen" began May 3 and will run for six weeks in the banquet area of A.J.'s Roadhouse, right down Kellogg Avenue from the track.

"Very few photos in the show feature actual race action, rather moments leading up to preparing a horse for the races and the beauty and serenity the early morning brings to a racetrack," Engelhardt said.

This is not the first show for the native of Syracuse, N.Y. Englehardt is a graduate of the University of Dayton, where he also served as the school newspaper's cartoonist. Upon graduation, he presented a two-man, multi-media show with sculptor Raymond Katz. In 2006, he took part in an exhibition in Washington, D.C., with internationally acclaimed painter Mary Anne Reilly and sculptor Claire McArdle.

An artist's reception will be held Sunday, May 18, from 4 to 7 p.m.

"I figured starting it on Derby Day at the horsemen's haven near the track was the best bet," Englehardt said.

* Sunday is River Downs T-shirt giveaway day in honor of Mother's Day. The first 2,000 patrons who purchase a program will receive a River Downs T-shirt.