Force Field and the Scotiabank CONTACT Photo Festival

A circular exhibition of photos was displayed in Fort York National Historic Site Garrison Common with pictures by Dayna Danger, Peter Morin, Fallon Simard and Ange Loft. The group exhibition is described as an Indigiqueer, immersive intervention is compromised of two sided billboards, run in a circle and includes a medicine wheel planter in the middle. The installation began in June and continued until the beginning of September 2021.

From CONTACT's website, "The project’s title, Force Field, is intended as a double entendre—it honours the positive force that Indigiqueer folx offer as a community, and acknowledges the individual force fields Indigiqueer folx often need to protect ourselves from the ongoing dominance of various colonial, heteronormative, cis, white, and patriarchal pressures. The installation’s circular viewing structure physically mirrors what we might imagine a real protective force field would look like, creating a buffered safe space within an area historically rife with hazard. The title also connects to the violent legacy upheld by memorializing a military fortress—underscoring how this public park supports the acts of colonial power and brutality once exerted there. Each artist brings a unique perspective to the exhibition. In addition to connecting with the site and the installation’s overarching Indigqueer themes, artists were also asked to respond to one of the four natural elements."

See more of the photo exhibition after the jump.

Deanna Bowen wins 2021 Scotiabank Photography Award

Eleven talented photographers were longlisted in the 11th annual Scotiabank Photography Award with interdisciplinary artist Deanna Bowen announced as the winner. In addition to photography she also works in sculpture, drawings, installations and performances addressing subjects such as race, migration and trauma. Ms. Bowen of Montreal, Quebec will receive prizes including $50,000, a solo exhibition at the Ryerson Image Centre in next year's Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival and a published book of her work. Deanna Bowen's “Frank”, 2019, Back-mounted inkjet prints on photo paper on plexiglass is pictured at top.

Deanna Bowen Headshot (CNW Group/Scotiabank)

“A well-deserved congratulations to Deanna, winner of the Scotiabank Photography Award, whose art tells an important story about our country and its history,” says Laura Curtis Ferrera, Chief Marketing Officer, Scotiabank. “At Scotiabank, we believe the arts enrich our communities and our society in significant ways. Through the Scotiabank Photography Award, we’re proud to help elevate the careers of some of Canada’s most accomplished and gifted artists, particularly during these challenging times.”

The prestigious Scotiabank Photography Award, started in 2010, is a peer-nominated and peer-reviewed award featuring the best of contemporary established Canadian photographers. The contest looks has six criteria such as excellence in both narrative and the art form along with a national profile and exhibition and publications , Nominations from industry experts that include curators, artists, gallery directors and others are reviewed by three expert Jurors (Sophie Hackett, Dr. Kenneth Montague and Brian Sholis), chaired by Edward Burtynsky, who select three finalists and the winner. The three finalists win $10,000 each (Annie MacDonell, Dawit L. Petros and Greg Staats).

“It is a great pleasure to recognize Deanna Bowen as the 2021 Scotiabank Photography Award winner. Deanna’s deeply personal connection to her art – in particular her photography – immerses the viewer in a brilliantly potent documentation of genealogy, race, and migration in Canada,” said Edward Burtynsky. “Her solo exhibition during the 2022 Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival should not be missed.”

Deanna Bowen, Black Drones in the Hive, Chapter 2 – Abolition, Archival inkjet prints on photo paper with glazed black and natural frames, 2020. Photo: Toni Hafkenscheid (CNW Group/Scotiabank)

Ms. Bowen has produced and has work published exploring the migrations of her family to "all-Black" towns in the U.S. as well as examining the Ku Klux Klan in both the U.S. and Canada, won many awards and a Fellowship from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Deanna is represented by the MKG127 Gallery.

From Scotiabank's interview with Ms. Bowen; "The seeds of Bowen’s current work were sown when her research led her to documents about the arrival in Edmonton of the first group of Black freemen from Oklahoma, and the subsequent signing of a petition by the Edmonton Board of Trade and city businessmen urging Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier to discourage African Americans from homesteading. Laurier obliged, signing an Order-in-Council prohibiting Black homesteaders.

“The many letters that were generated to support the petition insisted white people were getting agitated, and if the Canadian government didn’t intervene, they would resort to lynch mobs,” Bowen said, pointing to a history of hostility Canadians know little about."

@Scotiabank Photography Award 2021 Longlist

Eleven Canadian photographers are in the running for the upcoming Scotiabank Photography Award which highlights lens-based visual arts in Canada. Esteemed members of the art community put together the list of artists that are judged by a jury of photography experts with the winner taking home a prized exhibition, cash and other amazing rewards. The experts; Edward Burtnysky, Artist, chair of the jury, Sophie Hackett, Curator, Photography at the Art Gallery of Ontario, Dr Kenneth Montague, Art Collector & Curator and Brian Sholis, Editor, Curator/Writer, will select the finalists (announced March 31) and the final winner (announced in Spring 2021). Nominee Will Gill's (St Johns, Newfoundland) pink boat photograph at top.

Scotiabank is of course one of the top sponsors of cultural and community events in Canada and certainly in Toronto. They have been instrumental in supporting photography starting in 1976 with their Scotiabank Fine Art Collection and continuing as they became a founding partner in the Canadian Photography Institute in 2015, as well as the annual Scotiabank Photography Award and the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival. Laura Curtis Ferrera, Chief Marketing Officer, Scotiabank says. "Visual art carries rich and engaging stories that give us a snapshot of life at a point in time. We are proud to play a role in celebrating the creative vision and accomplishments of our country's most gifted photographers."

The photographers in the 2021 longlist include the following.
Vikky Alexander, Montreal, QC
Jeff Bierk, Toronto, ON
Deanna Bowen, Montreal, QC
Sara Cwynar, Vancouver, BC and Brooklyn, NY
Will Gill, St. John's, NL
Annie MacDonell, Toronto, ON
Dawit L. Petros, Montreal, QC
Ned Pratt, St. John's, NL
Carol Sawyer, Vancouver, BC
Greg Staats, Toronto / Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, ON
Jeff Thomas, Ottawa, ON

From Scotiabank, "The Scotiabank Photography Award recognizes the achievements of established mid-to-late career artists and is Canada's largest and most prestigious annual peer-nominated and reviewed prize. The Award celebrates the creative vision and accomplishments of some of the country's most gifted contemporary lens-based artists. In addition to being featured in a solo Primary Exhibition at Ryerson Image Centre during the 2022 Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, the winner of the Scotiabank Photography Award will take home $50,000 and will have a book of their work published and distributed worldwide by Steidl. The finalists will each receive $10,000."

"I am incredibly grateful to the Awards Nominators for their time and consideration as we compile the 2021 longlist of Scotiabank Photography Award candidates," says Edward Burtynsky, Chair of the Scotiabank Photography Award jury. "I'm equally excited and proud to see the perseverance and talent of our Canadian photographic artists, as they continue to create and put the kind of art we all need out into the world during these trying times. Congratulations to all."

Dana Claxton, winner of the 2020 Scotiabank Photography Award, will present her exhibition at the Ryerson Image Centre during the Scotiabank 2021 CONTACT Photography Festival.

The 2021 longlist was put together by the following nominators.

Rose Bouthillier, Curator (Exhibitions) at Remai Modern, Saskatoon, SK
Mireille Eagan, Curator of Contemporary Art, The Rooms, St. John's, NL
Mona Filip, Director/Curator of the Koffler Gallery of the Koffler Centre of the Arts, Toronto, ON
Dominique Fontaine, Curator, Founding Director of aPOSteRIORI, Montreal, QC
Matthew Hills, Director and Curator of the Grenfell Art Gallery, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Corner Brook, NL
Michelle Jacques, Head of Exhibitions & Collections/Chief Curator at Remai Modern, Saskatoon, SK
Lisa Kehler, curator and art consultant, Winnipeg, MB
Gerald McMaster, Tier 1 Canada Research of Indigenous Visual Culture and Curatorial Practice, Director of the Wapatah: Centre for Indigenous Visual Knowledge, OCAD University, Toronto, ON
Crystal Mowry, Senior Curator, Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery (KWAG), Kitchener, ON
cheyanne turions, Curator, SFU Galleries, cultural worker and writer, Vancouver, BC
Emmy Lee Wall, Executive Director, Capture Photography Festival, Vancouver, BC

You can find the winner on my post here.

Scotiabank New Generation Photography 2020 longlist

Thirteen Canadian photographers under the age of 30 have been included in the Scotiabank New Generation Photography competition for 2020 with three winners to be announced March 25. The contenders in the third annual awards program were picked by Scotiabank and the National Gallery of Canada with each winner to receive a $10,000 cash prize and a feature in two exhibitions.

The first exhibition will be during the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival May 1 to June 7, 2020 where the works will be shown at the Gladstone Hotel in Toronto. Then they will be shown at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa from November 2020 till March 2021.

Scotiabank is a powerhouse for support and sponsorship of community, charities and philanthropic activities, donating close to $100 million dollars in 2019. "Scotiabank has a deep passion for supporting the arts, culture and young people," says Mike Tasevski, Vice President, Global Sponsorships at Scotiabank. "We are proud to continue to play a role in celebrating the creative vision and accomplishments of our country's most promising new photographers."

New Generation Photographer 2020 longlist:

Lacie Burning – Vancouver/Six Nations of the Grand River, BC
Justin Carter – Halifax, NS
Garnet Dirksen – Merritt, BC
Noah Friebel – Vancouver, BC
Sarah Jasmine Hodgson – Ottawa, ON
Kaysha Jamieson – Hamilton, ON
Olivia Johnston – Ottawa, ON
Marisa Kriangwiwat Holmes – Richmond, BC
Delphine Lewis – Westmount, Quebec
Samantha Miller – Ohsweken, Six Nations, Ontario
Curtiss Randolph – Toronto, ON
Rachel Rozanski – Toronto, ON
Katherine Takpannie – Ottawa, ON

Nominees on the 2020 longlist as judged by: Ann Thomas, Senior Curator, Photographs, National Gallery of Canada, and Chair of the Jury. Luther Konadu, Artist and past New Generation Photography Award winner (2019). Andrea Kunard, Associate Curator, Photographs, National Gallery of Canada. Suzy Lake, Artist and past Scotiabank Photography Award winner (2016) and Alain Paiement, Artist and Professor at Université de Québec à Montréal:

"This year's nominees for the New Generation Photography Award continue to impress with the high-quality of their work and lively engagement with the photographic medium," says Ann Thomas, Senior Curator, Photography, National Gallery of Canada and Chair of the Jury. "The diversity of the submissions reveals photography's power to explore a wide range of subject matter, ranging from personal journeys to pressing social issues. The prize celebrates the artistic vision of an up-and-coming generation of artists, and most importantly offers support and encouragement for both nominees and winners."

See last year's winners on my post here.

Angela Grauerholz

The award winning photographer previewed her 2016 Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival exhibition at the prestigious Ryerson Image Centre. During the May 2nd event, which also continued the CONTACT kickoff, Paul Roth, Director of the Image Centre and co-curator of Angela's exhibition, greeted media and guests at the Howard Tanenbaum Welcome Centre, thanked the CONTACT organization and the primary sponsor Scotiabank and introduced the artist.

Paul Roth addresses the group

Originally from Hamburg, Germany Angela earned her Master's degree in Fine Arts (photography) at Montreal's Concordia University. She stayed in Montreal, winning an impressive array of awards, including the Canada Council Governor Generals Award in Visual and Media Arts, and has been a full professor at the Ecole de design at the Universite du Quebec a Montreal - teaching typography and photography since 1988.

Angela Grauerholz worked early with black and white photography and in the last couple of years and has started bringing colour into her prints. Many of her photos have a contemplative, out-of-focus quality of portraits, interior spaces, architectural components and urban and rural landscapes. "This exhibition celebrates the artist’s career through a survey of more than 70 works, spanning from the 1980s to today. Her photographs speak to the notion of memory, described by the artist as “a kind of amnesia, a vague recollection of something that can be conjured up, triggered by an event or site, but remains blurred.” A recurrent theme in her work addresses the specific architecture and distinctive display modes of archives, museums, and libraries, photographed throughout Europe and North America. She has documented a number of these sites of memory, focusing on how they function as constructed locations for cultural memory to reside."

A couple viewing the exhibition is reflected in the picture of a couple at the library in Angela's photo: La bibliotheque, 1939, azo dye print. Courtesy of the artist, Art 45, Montreal the Olga Korper Gallery, Toronto.

Altar Restoration, 2008, inkjet print. Courtesy of the Donovan Collection St Michael's Collection, University of Toronto

"I am honoured that my work will be showcased as a primary exhibition at the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival at the Ryerson Image Centre this year," said Angela Grauerholz, winner of the 2015 Scotiabank Photography Award. "This Festival is known around the world for increasing the exposure and recognition for local, Canadian and international artists and for cultivating creativity and innovation in photography."

The initial room features photos of library books burned in a fire. Called Privation, 2001, Inkjet prints, a selection of 18 prints from the series

These photographs are on display at the Image Centre from May 4 to August 21, 2016, part of the CONTACT Festival which has become the world's largest annual photography event . This year there are over 20 primary exhibitions and 20 free public exhibitions featured in over 200 events in Toronto. CONTACT runs from May 1 to May 30 every year along with year round programming at the CONTACT Gallery.

Schriftbilder, a collection of ancient, dead and surviving languages, 1999, Gelatin Silver Prints (photograms)

"We are proud of our long-time support of the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, and pleased to celebrate 20 years of photographic excellence, including the work of our 2015 Scotiabank Photography Award winner, Angela Grauerholz," said John Doig, Executive Vice-President & Chief Marketing Officer at Scotiabank. "At Scotiabank, we know that the arts inspire Canadians to pursue their passions and provide us with new perspectives that enrich our lives."

The Ryerson Image Centre is located at Ryerson University in the heart of downtown Toronto. An active partner of the University, it allows for research, teaching and exhibition of photography and other related media. It is also home to the Black Star Collection which includes many iconic photojournalism images capturing figures and events from historical, political and popular culture as well as early space exploration.

Scotiabank Photography Award 2016

Finalists in the prestigious photography competition joined media and sponsors as they launched a new public art installation called Beyond The Frame at Queen and McCaul in Toronto. The Scotiabank Photography Award finalists for 2016 are Pascal Grandmaison, Suzy Lake and Jayce Salloum. This award recognizes established photographers in Canada's largest peer nominated and judged competition.

Jayce Sallows, Scotiabank's Ben Thompson and Suzy Lake

"At Scotiabank, we have witnessed, first hand, the powerful way that photography helps people connect with a moment in time. In 2010, we co-created the Scotiabank Photography Award, with Edward Burtynsky, to strengthen our commitment to the arts and to celebrate the creative vision and accomplishments of some of our country’s most gifted photographers," said Barbara Mason, Group Head and Chief Human Resources Officer at Scotiabank. "The finalists for this Award are artists who strive to invent, influence and redefine art in enduring ways." Ben Thompson, the Scotiabank branch manager of Small Business, announced the finalists and noted the artists' outstanding contribution to Canadian contemporary art and photography.

Suzy and Jayce stand at the window as their photos are projected onto the Scotiabank wall across the street

The winner will be announced at the Ryerson Image Centre on May 3, 2016 and will receive $50,000, an internationally distributed book and an exhibition at the 2017 Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival. The remaining finalists will recieve cash prizes of $10,000. Last year's winner - Angela Grauerholz, will have a solo primary exhibition at the 2016 CONTACT which will run from May 4 to August 21, 2016.

The temporary display of the artist's photographs will be projected on the outside wall of the Scotiabank branch bank at McCaul and Queen Street West until this Saturday, from 8pm to 11pm. People passing by will be able to see the gallery as they wander the busy area which is home to such attractions as ROM, OCAD and Much Music. Phone numbers will be posted with the photos where members of the public can text '?' to 1-855-800-2112 which directs people to the following video.

Canadian Forces Combat Camera Best Photos of 2013

The Canadian Forces Combat Camera has chosen their top photos of 2013 and you can find them on their website:http://www.combatcamera.forces.gc.ca. Here are several photos that I really liked, photos and descriptions by the Canadian Forces. At top: A Royal Canadian Air Force CC-177 Globemaster aircraft sits on the tarmac of Iloilo city airport during Operation RENAISSANCE, in Iloilo city, on November 17, 2013. Photo: MCpl Marc-Andre Gaudreault, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

Master Corporal Joe Wilson assists a member of the Armée de Terre (French Army) as they take aim with the C9 machine gun during a coalition training session at Kabul Military Training Centre in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 3, 2013 during Operation ATTENTION. Photo: MCpl Frieda Van Putten

A CF-18 Hornet in flight during an air combat training exercise for Squadron 425 pilots from Bagotville. Photo: Corporal Pierre Habib, 3 Wing Bagotville © 2013 DND-MDN Canada

A CC-150 Polaris Airbus from 437 Transport Squadron in Trenton provides air-to-air refueling to CF-18 Hornet fighter aircraft from 409 Tactical Fighter Squadron on their transit from Cold Lake, Alberta to Elmendorf, Alaska in preparation for Exercise VIGILANT EAGLE 13 on August 25, 2013. Photo: Cpl Vicky Lefrancois, DAirPA

Search and Rescue Technicians conduct a free fall jump from a CC-130 Hercules aircraft over 14 Wing Greenwood, Nova Scotia as part of parachute training on August 21, 2013. Photo: Corporal Don Kirkwood, 14 AMS, Wing Imaging

Search and Rescue technician, Master Corporal Jeff Connors is hoisted by a CH-149 helicopter during a search and rescue exercise in Miramachi, New Brunswick on October 9, 2013. Photo: Cpl Crystal Roche, 14 Wing Imaging, Greenwood

After jumping into the Pacific Ocean near the shores of Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt British Columbia, Leading Seaman Gabriel Mercier, a member from the Fleet Diving Unit (Atlantic) Clearance Divers places his weapon on his rucksac prior to his swim to the shore on May 7, 2013 to conduct a beach landing site reconnaissance during Exercise TRIDENT FURY 13. Photo: Sgt Norm McLean, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship TORONTO (left) and the United States Ship STOCKDALE (right) are hooked up to the United States Ship CESAR CHAVEZ (centre) for a fuel replenishment in the Gulf of Oman during Operation ARTEMIS on August 16, 2013. Photo: Master Corporal David Singleton-Browne, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

During calm seas the wake produced by Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship TORONTO and the United States Ship RAINIER, during an underway replenishment, collide to produce high waves and spray during Operation ARTEMIS on August 24, 2013. Photo: Master Corporal David Singleton-Browne, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

A US Navy Sea Hawk helicopter lands on Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship TORONTO as part of coalition flight operations during Operation ARTEMIS on August 27, 2013. Photo: Master Corporal David Singleton-Browne, Canadian Forces Combat Camera

Supermodel Theresa Longo

#Toronto model @TheresaLongo brightens up many promotional events around the world and it is always great to see her when she is in town. As a brand ambassador and promotional model she is in high demand and her friendly smile makes you feel welcome at any event. Here she is at the 2012 Exposure Photography Expo at the International Centre.

The lovely lady has an Honors Degree in Business Administration and has won many contests such as Miss Budweiser and the North American representative to Miss Italia of the World. She has also been featured as a Toronto Sunshine Girl many times and was included in the Sunshine Girl Calendar in 2010 and the Sun Swimsuit Calendar in 2012.

See her at the 2012 Honda Indy Toronto here, the 2011 Honda Indy Toronto here, the 2012 Miss Chin Bikini Contest here, and as Miss Budweiser 2010 here. These are just a few of the times I have been able to photograph Theresa and I hope for many more times in the future.

Exposure Photo Show

The Exposure Photo and Video Imaging Show is currently underway at the Toronto International Centre and runs until Sunday May 27, 2012. For a photographer the toys are hard to resist and as a bonus there are models to test your photo skills. Bring your camera or buy one at the show.

 See more photos of the photo show after the jump.

Kids Who Can at Brookfield Place

Kids Who Can, Easter Seals Camps photo and video project at the Allen Lambert Galleriea in the #Toronto Brookfield Place in partnership with PhotoSensitive and sponsored by Canon. There are some very powerful photos in the long hall, including Sarah Tipple with her Aunt Tara by photographer Greg Locke.

The exhibition is about Easter Seals Camps which "provides year-round services to individuals living with a wide range of mental and physical disabilities. Every summer, Easter Seals camps give thousands of children an opportunity to challenge themselves while having the time of their lives. Kids can play and laugh as they sail, fish and sing by the fire. Twenty-four photographers and videographers visited twelve of these Easter Seals camps in the summer of 2011 to capture the energy and enthusiasm of Canadian youth with disabilities from all across the country. Kids Who Can will also be celebrated on the 2012 Easter Seals Telethon in Ontario."

TIEd Together Exhibition at Brookfield Place

A display of photos at #Toronto Brookfield Place showcases the human toll of people affected by prostate cancer - which is the most common male cancer. The images and stories comprising PhotoSensitive's TIEd Together exhibit will stay in the great hall from Jan 10 to 21, 2012 on it's multi-city tour in partnership with Prostate Cancer Canada.

"The exhibition is a Canadian-first community awareness initiative exposing the devastating physical, emotional and mental impact of living with prostate cancer. It includes portraits of real people with real stories including notables such as Jack Layton, Pierre Trudeau, Alex Baumann, Brett Wilson and Preston Manning. In addition, the exhibition also has a touch screen unit displaying 10 personal video interviews with prostate cancer survivors and their loved ones from across Canada."

See images of the display after the jump.

Canadian Forces Combat Camera Best Photos of 2011

The Canadian Forces Combat Camera has chosen their top photos of 2011 and you can find them on their website:http://www.combatcamera.forces.gc.ca. I picked four really cool shots of our forces in action to post here, all photos from the DND. Take a look at all they stuff these guys and gals get involved in.  In the water, pictured at top: Deployed on Operation NANOOK 11, Leading Seaman Aaron Page and Marc Andre Ouimet dive on the wreckage of a C-54 Skymaster (a.k.a DC-4) that crashed in 1951. Photo Credit: Master Corporal Peter Reed.

On the beach: Nine hundred reservists from the 35th Canadian Brigade Group (35 CBG) take part in Exercise Franchissement Audacieux on October 1, 2011 in Les Éboulements and Île-aux-Coudres municipalities, in the region of Charlevoix, QC. Photo by: Sgt Jean-François Néron.

On the chopper in Afghanistan : Canadian Forces Door Gunner, Sergeant Chad Zopf, leans out of the CH-146 Griffon helicopter to obtain positive identification on a target and engage it using his GAU-21 50-caliber machine gun during a training exercise. Photo by: Sergeant Matthew McGregor.

In the air: A CF-18 in flight during Exercise Combat Archer, which was held in Tyndall, Florida. Photo: Corporal Pierre Habib.

Those military photographers take some fine pictures.

Toronto Photo Show

The Photographic, Video and Digital Imaging Show runs at Toronto's International Centre on October 17 to the 19th, 2008. There was some excellent equipment (I picked up some lighting stuff) and some nice models that loved to have their portraits taken.





At the same time the Snowmobile, ATV and powersports Show was going on. They had a great little demonstration track set up. I missed the snowmobilers going over the high jump but I caught a little of some ATV racing.