AMSTERDAM.- American photographer Lydia Panas exhibits for the first time in The Netherlands. Set in the grimly green countryside of Pennsylvania, 'The Mark of Abel' is a collection of intense group portraits taken of her friends and family. The exhibition is from 11 May until 22 June in Eduard Planting Gallery in Amsterdam.

For three years Lydia invited families to stand before her lens. Nothing was deliberate or planned. These diverse groupings of children and adults, relatives and close friends, stood graciously before her, taking positions in relationship to each other and to the camera.

Lydia Panas is particularly interested in young people growing up, and the transition between childhood and adulthood when we are searching for our own identities. She is fearless in confronting human subjects and curious about human interaction, but her interest is tender.

The award-winning photographer exhibits internationally. Her work is also held in many private and public collections including the Brooklyn Museum, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Museum of Contemporary Photography Chicago, Allentown Art Museum and Shanghai Zendai Museum of Modern Art.

Photographs of Lydia Panas have been widely published in media such as The New York Times Magazine and the Wall Street Journal Blog. Her first monograph 'The Mark of Abel' was one of Photo District News‘ best photo books for 2012 and a Top Ten Coffee Table Book of 2012 by The Daily Beast.