Since my arrival in Ottawa in 2016 I have been using photography to discover my new home and decode the semiotics of the new reality I am surrounded by. I aim to show an Ottawa which is often overlooked yet omnipresent. I strongly believe that, to truly understand a subject matter as complex as the built environment, we need to possess imagery free from stylistic devices intentionally inflicting the feeling of nostalgia upon the viewer or limited to touristy vistas and images created with promotional purposes in mind.
As a newcomer and learner of Ottawa I see the city without nostalgia although I appreciate that my subject matter and style informed by it can inspire sentimental responses in the viewers.
I am inquisitive about the ordinary which can be found even during extraordinary circumstances such as floods or more recently the pandemic.
I emphasize recording subjects at risk of disappearing undocumented - the commonplace subjects. I am curious about how we interact, use and shape our surroundings and how the surroundings shape us. I am looking for manifestations of both historic and contemporary socioeconomic and natural forces, which form the urban environment of Ottawa and influence the way we live.
Important transformative ideas can be frequently seen concealed in the urban fabric and seemingly unremarkable places to which I am often attracted. Transportation infrastructure, mass consumerism and modernist urban planning greatly influenced urban landscape of Ottawa which in turn now is being affected by gentrification and changing consumerist and labour related behaviours.
In The Waterways chapter of Ottawa series I survey and document activities along the natural and man-made waterways as they have played and continue to play a vital role in the development of the city. These rivers and canals are being tamed, utilised and determine the topography and character of Ottawa.
In Autowa chapter of my series I observe invasive and ubiquitous automotive infrastructure and misuse of public space.
Furthermore, I am fascinated by the brute force of the Canadian winter. I am continuing to document Ottawa during this long and harsh season not because of its picturesque attributes but for its ability to transform and even repurpose the landscape. Winter is as integral to my series as it is to life in Canada.
I see myself as an archivist who observes the constantly evolving city and documents those aspects which might soon change their purpose, form, meaning or become no more than a memory. One might say that my images are created for both the contemporary viewer and the one yet to be born.
