Canada COVID Portrait
A Collaborative Project in support of the Portrait Gallery of Canada
The Canada COVID Portrait is an initiative in support of the Portrait Gallery of Canada. It is a collaborative photography project committed to documenting how the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is impacting every aspect of this country’s sudden transformation and adaptation to our new-world normal. The Canada COVID Portrait is a call for submissions to everyone with a camera – citizen photographers and professionals alike – to create an archive, for the future about what we are going through today.
| “As a third generation photographer, I became fascinated with looking back at vintage photos from the 1918 Spanish flu era to see how history was documented. During this current pandemic, I have realized how important it is to capture the essence of how we are living through this unique time in our country’s history.” – George Pimentel, Photographer |
| The Canada COVID Portrait’s goal is to create a visual archive of how the pandemic is redefining every facet of Canadian life. The initiative is looking for fly-on-the wall pictures of people that convey emotion and reveal how everyday aspects of our lives now look different because of the measures we take to prevent infection. Canada COVID Portrait is asking all Canadians to share their pictures, from all elements of their suddenly transformed lives including but not limited to these categories: family, work, leisure, streets, sports, culture, communities, commerce, celebrations, political engagement, religious rituals, health, and transportation. Our goal is to bring together thousands of images taken across the country, capturing the gamut of life from birth to death, in the spirit of solidarity and to record this transformative moment in history. |
Canada COVID Portrait will take the form of photo essays celebrating the universal aspects of the human experience during a period unlike any other time or circumstance that we have known. Canada COVID Portrait has launched social media platforms for the initiative, via Instagram and Facebook @CanadaCovidPortrait. A website is in development and set to be unveiled by the end of May whereby Canadians can submit their photos to be part of a forthcoming exhibition.
Canada COVID Portrait is being organized voluntarily under the direction of Portrait Gallery of Canada Advisory Board Member Sara Angel and professional photographer George Pimentel, along with a dedicated volunteer committee of arts industry professionals, who are striving to document history through the art of portraiture.
Follow: @CanadaCovidPortarit
Facebook: @CanadaCovidPortrait
#canadacovidportrait
