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Message from Karen dubois
executive director
Klondike Institute of art and Culture
elcome to this landmark event in KIAC’s long history of fascination with the camera
obscura. The Midnight Sun Camera Obscura Festival brings to Dawson an eclectic
collection of artists and academics who share this fascination. The Festival was
inspired by principal researcher Donald Lawrence, a professor from Thompson River University in
Kamloops, BC, whose underwater pinhole photographs were exhibited in the ODD Gallery in 2004.
Donald received a grant from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada to
allow participants to undertake a multiphase research project which includes a literature review, a
seminar style meeting for purposes of information sharing, community workshops, public exhibitions
and discussions, on-line and print publications and this festival of cameras obscura. Interest and
excitement for this project has been building for quite some time; expect to see some amazing
creations, participate in interesting workshops, and hear some inspiring discussions.
Why in Dawson City, you may ask? First of all, KIAC and the ODD Gallery are mandated to provide
professional development experience in the visual arts. In the early years, when we offered the Arts
for Employment program, Mario Villeneuve communicated his enthusiasm for pinhole photography
to many cohorts of students. For many years this excitement was captured in a 48-hour Pinhole
Photography competition. The leap from pinhole to camera obscura was just a matter of time. Mario
and Mike Yuhasz, the ODD Gallery Director, turned the KIAC Ballroom into a huge camera obscura
during the 2001 Yukon Riverside Art Festival. Those who were lucky enough to experience the camera
were amazed and delighted, and as a result, volunteers built a camera obscura near the Front Street
gazebo. When the City of Dawson revitalized the riverfront dike area, they included improvements
to the camera obscura in their plans. The camera obscura, or Magic Box, is a popular attraction for
visitors – be sure to stop by and see it during the Festival.
There is a unique perspective in Dawson that makes camera obscura an excellent fit. We are situated
within the Klondike National Historic Site on Tr’ondek Hwech’in traditional territory and our rich history
provides a framework and an inspiration for the many contemporary art forms that flourish here. In a
similar fashion, while the camera obscura plays a significant place historically in the development of
photography, it continues to inspire experimentation and new ideas. If you visit the artists’ installations
and attend the many lectures and discussions during the Festival, this will be evident. And what could
be more perfect than hosting a festival of cameras obscura during the twenty four hour daylight of the
Midnight Sun?
KIAC is very happy to be a part of this event. We extend our thanks to Donald, his vibrant cohort of
research assistants, and the artists and academics who have travelled from afar, for the invitation to
be involved. We are excited to see the projects and hear the stories that have been inspired by light, by
history and by place.
Dawson City, Yukon, Canada