Post by Shewit Kalaty.
As soon as you walk into the photography exhibit at the Council of the Arts of Ottawa (CAO), a row of portraits from four young emerging artists immediately grabs your attention. Rawaa Ayoub, Freya Poirier, Emma Rath and Maya Wilson, whose ages range from 13 to 17, took each other’s portraits – each displaying her own individuality and uniqueness. Curator Julie Hodgson explains her thoughts on exhibition on the CAO website.
Peter Honeywell, Executive Director of the CAO, helped to guide the photographers through the installation process, asking questions that would challenge their minds and dig deeper into their usual ways of thinking. With four works from each artist, what is striking about A Gallery of Portraits is the immediate sense of their talent and growth through the photographic process – these young women create a visual manifestation of their identities and perspectives on life.
Rawaa Ayoub’s photos are the first to catch your eye, with family being the theme of her work. There is a real sense of her strong relationship with them, particularly her mother and brother. The contrast of her little brother in the winter and spring shows us how weather can contain our spirit, yet bring out the liveliness in us all. What is striking is how it can affect a child who is filled with so much life and innocence. In one photograph, he stands with his face tucked in his winter coat, looking straight on as he tries to stay warm. In the other, he is jumping with glee on a warm spring day.
Using sepia tones that evoke feelings from an earlier time, seventeen-year old Freya Poirier works with her great-grandmother’s wedding dress. Poirier’s photographs pay homage to the 1930’s and a woman whose inspiration is apparent. In spite of the vintage feel one gets from the photos, we still get a sense of modernity, which creates a nice duality between old and new.
Maya Wilson’s photographs are named after non-English words: In Torschlusspanik (the German word for the fear of time running out), a young adolescent daydreams in a room. In this piece we see that fear reigns within us all – that often we feel like opportunity comes less as we age. Her photograph of torso and hands is brilliant – its gloomy and eerie aura call to mind Alfred Hitchcock.
The stories of buildings and what makes them look tired and worn down is portrayed in the work of thirteen-year old Emma Rath. Photographed alongside a child to contrast between the old and the new, we see that buildings can be just like human skin, with a story that grows and ages. It is astonishing that this concept came from the mind of a thirteen-year old.
The work produced by these bright young women is something to be proud of. It is a reminder that we are more than just our day-to-day activities. The intricate and meticulous tales of our lives are what shape us, what define our identity and what help give us a sense of purpose. These young women are giants in their imaginations.
A Gallery of Portraits continues until October 14 at Ottawa Arts Court (2 Daly Avenue), as part of Festival X, Ottawa’s Photography Festival.
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