Reinventing myself at the CCA

A dear friend once told me as he was forging a new path in his career: ‘I consider it healthy to reinvent yourself every 10 years’. His words always stayed with me, as a promise and an encouragement. The past year, I have had ample time to reconsider my role and position in the field of photography. Was I still at the right place with my specific skill set and experience as an independent curator and author? And where could I realise my ambitions to re-connect photography with other mediums and art forms, foster cross-disciplinary approaches and contribute in writing about the future of lens based practices?

Working in the photo community can be insular, an experience that became even more pronounced due to the pandemic. While insularity is not in itself a negative or a positive quality, I felt it no longer was an environment that motivated me to expand my interests. That is why I have accepted a position as Curator Photography and New Media at the Canadian Centre of Architecture, aka the CCA, where I am to start working remotely next week, and in situ later this summer.

Perhaps not very well known among (younger) photographers, the CCA holds a truly impressive collection, among which are some 60.000 photographic images, dating from the inception of photography to today. The collection archives have been and still are in the process of being made accessible digitally, intended for researchers who do not have the opportunity to travel to Montréal in person. Of course, I myself will move there physically to join an amazing, warm and welcoming team of curators, researchers, editors and publishers under the direction of Giovanna Borasi. The prospect of contributing to the surprisingly rich range of activities of the CCA is tremendously exciting, and offers me the kind of growth opportunity that I was looking for. In short, I feel incredibly honoured with the appointment and look forward to meeting all the challenges that it brings.

Note: Accepting this position also has consequences for my presence on social media. In the near future, I will become less active on Facebook, and set up a new professional profile, from where I will follow ongoing relevant conversations and keep an ear on the ground with regards to related projects, publications, events, exhibitions, etc.

Image from an installation by Douglas Copeland, November 2020, on the fences of the CCA.

Discover more about the CCA: https://www.cca.qc.ca/en/