The city's new photo laureate wants to spur conversation about social issues, especially as they relate to Indigenous communities
By Caitlin Stall-Paquet | Photograph by Eray Guler |Nadya Kwandibens has spent the past two decades criss-crossing North America, taking pictures of Indigenous people and sharing their stories. A member of the Animakee Wa Zhing #37 First Nation in northwestern Ontario, she now makes her home in Toronto, where she was recently named the city’s newest photo laureate.
You’ve travelled extensively across Canada and the US taking portraits. How do you decide on your subjects? I don’t choose them unless I’m working on a specific series. Mostly I’m in touch with people through word of mouth. I’ll put out a call saying that I’ll be visiting their community for a week or two and asking if anyone wants to be photographed. My practice has been built over time, and it hasn’t been glamorous. Just me, my camera, my bags and Greyhound buses—or flights, if I have enough money.What comes after picking up the camera isn’t even half the job.
, which focuses on decolonization and contemporary Indigenous identity. The series started off in black and white, giving it an archival feel, and then I switched to colour to place it in the here and now. The subject, my dear friend Rosary, chose to wear a floral top similar to what her kokum or aunties would have worn in their trapline days.”Na-Me-Res is a residence in Toronto for Indigenous men experiencing homelessness. I love shooting powwows because there’s so much movement.
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