Document/ary: New Photographs from Atlantic Canada presents the work of 14 contemporary lens-based artists from and/or based in Atlantic Canada. The exhibition examines the photograph both as documentation of art-making processes (document), and as documentary praxis—in the world documenting our time (documentary).
In the introductory text to a 1978 MoMA exhibition entitled Mirrors and Windows, John Szarkowski made the claim that all photographs exist on a spectrum—providing either a window to the world or a mirror to the soul. He writes: “The intention of this analysis [is] not to divide photography into two parts. On the contrary, it [is] to suggest a continuum, a single axis with two poles.”
Building upon this tradition, Document/ary suggests that photographs exist on an axis between documentary and document. Presented between two exhibition spaces, the portion in the McCain Gallery presents seven artists who use the camera as a means of documenting art performance and process. The Lower Gallery presents seven additional artists who use the camera to capture the realities of themselves and others out in the world.
This exhibition is part of the Photo East Festival's core programming.
Chris Donovan, Guest Curator
