street photography Archives - Page 5 of 8

Published December 2, 2020 by avardw

Toronto Streets in Colour

I thought I’d post some Toronto streets in colour for a change, as most of my output in the 1980s was in black and white. There is another reason, too. Shortly, I’ll be releasing a new book titled, Toronto In Colour: the 1980s that features a collection of colour photographs not seen in the previous three Toronto books; many of these images, in fact, haven’t ever been posted or published at all.

These decades old photos have been saved for the future. At 1/60 of a second per photo, there is only a few seconds worth of time in the entire book. Yet the photographs are so full of history and information, with stories both obvious, and unknown; both real and imagined. For me having the ability to stop time for an instant still seems magical.

Corey Rice writes about Roland Barthes’s analysis of a photograph: “When we look at a photograph, we are confronted with what Barthes labels the “having-been-there” quality of its contents. It is a testament to the existence of a specific thing in a specific place at a specific time. I can paint your portrait from anywhere in the world, but I can photograph you only when you are in front of my camera. Similarly, a photograph offers a view of the world that you will never have access to except through the photo. You can look but you cannot touch. A photograph can only show the past—but it represents it in such a way that it appears in the present. This paradox lends every photograph a touch of nostalgia or longing.”

The older I get, it seems the more my nostalgia grows for those days in my twenties, walking around the streets of Toronto with my camera. I hope you enjoy this small selection from my upcoming book. Stay tuned!

Rio Theatre, Yonge Street, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

Photography Toronto

1980s colour street photography Toronto Toronto streets in colour

Published June 13, 2019 by avardw

Nostalgia and Baby Boomers

Yonge Street, Toronto, 1980 – © Avard Woolaver

Nostalgia can be described as a sentimental longing for the past. It comes from the Greek nostos (homecoming) and algos (pain) and is thought to have been derived from Homer’s The Odyssey.

With baby boomers reaching their senior years, nostalgia seems to be their drug of choice. Advertisers target boomers with Beatles music, retro fashions, and even long dead actors such as Marilyn Munroe selling perfume. While boomers seem to be lapping it up, not everyone is crazy about the nostalgia bug. Heather Havrilesky writes in The Washington Post, “While griping about boomer nostalgia has become a somewhat common art, the cultural impact of that nostalgia transcends mere annoyance. Through sheer repetition and force of will, boomers have so thoroughly indoctrinated us into their worldview that we all now reflexively frame most current affairs through the lens of another generation’s formative experiences.” Abbey Hoffman might say not to trust anyone under 50!

I myself am a baby boomer. Born in 1958, I was six years old when the Beatles came to North America. I sang “A Hard Day’s Night” in my Grade One classroom, watched the moon landing on a fuzzy black and white TV, and took my Diana camera to Expo ’67 in Montreal. While I have nostalgia for those early years, the time I miss most was when I was in my early twenties, studying photography at Ryerson in Toronto.

The photos in this blog post capture the time that I am nostalgic for. They were taken in downtown Toronto in my early years of study. Everything was new and fresh, conversations were stimulating, photography was invigorating. Several of my classmates from that year became lifelong friends. Since returning to those days is impossible, I can make the journey with my retro photographs. It’s the next best thing.

The Junction, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

Eaton Centre, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Bond Street, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver

Yonge and College, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Keele and St. Clair, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

The Flyer, Exhibition Park, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

Black and White Photography Toronto

1980s baby boomers film photography nostalgia street photography Toronto Toronto in the 1980s

Published March 24, 2019 by avardw

Edmonton, Alberta in 1979

Klondike Days, 1979, — Klondike Days, Edmonton, Alberta, 1979 – © Avard Woolaver

I worked in Alberta in the summer of 1979–a summer job on the railway gang and a break from my studies at Acadia University. I managed to get into Edmonton a few weekends that summer and was eager to photograph in an urban environment as I had been living in the small town of Wolfville and hadn’t done much city photography.

I would stay at a dive hotel off Jasper Avenue in Edmonton called the Gateway Hotel (now long gone)–$15 a night, or $16 with a small black and white TV. It was the most basic of accommodation but such a feeling of freedom and independence. I was twenty years old and free to explore the city with my camera–my Jack Kerouac days. And being alone was a big part of it. Photography for me, has mostly been a solitary pursuit. I don’t prefer to be with others when I’m wandering with my camera.

I remember the city being really quiet on Sundays. Almost no stores were open, but you could see a movie, go to the library, or to a restaurant. I saw Woody Allen’s Manhattan that summer and heard Blondie’s Heart of Glass for the first time in a department store. Alberta seemed like the wild west in some ways–lots of red necks driving pick-up trucks. But Edmonton is quite a cultural center with a thriving arts scene. I really enjoyed my time there.

Alberta, 1979, — Edmonton, Alberta, 1979 – © Avard Woolaver

Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, 1979, — Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, 1979 – © Avard Woolaver

Kinsmen Park, Edmonton, Alberta, 1979, — Kinsmen Park, Edmonton, Alberta, 1979 – © Avard Woolaver

Black and White Blogging Film Photography Photography

1979 Alberta Edmonton photography street photography

Published March 7, 2019 by avardw

Toronto streets in the 1980s

Dundas and Victoria, Toronto, 1982, Toronto streets, — Dundas and Victoria, Toronto, 1982 – © Avard Woolaver

I enjoyed capturing the Toronto streets in the 1980s. It was liberating to walk around with a camera and find that special moment when time and place come together. The time when the yellow van is stopped near the yellow hydrant, or when the boy is crossing Lake Devo on his BMX bike. The rhythm of the city was something I could feel, it was like listening to an urban symphony.

I was in my twenties then with few commitments or responsibilities. Life is much different now at 60, with a family, and living in rural Nova Scotia. I may never again have the opportunity to roam the Toronto streets with a camera like I did in the 1980s. It reminds me that life is short, and helps me remember, You only get to do this once. We have to take time and see it, as clearly as we can.

Photos in this post are from the book Toronto Days – available through Blurb Books and Amazon.

Lake Devo, Toronto, 1981, Toronto streets, — Lake Devo, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver

Eastern Avenue, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Eastern Avenue, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Dundas and Keele, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Dundas West and Keele, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Yonge Street, Toronto, 1981 – © Avard Woolaver, Toronto streets, — Yonge Street, Toronto, 1985 – © Avard Woolaver

Queen and Bathurst, Toronto, 1983, Toronto streets, — Queen and Bathurst, Toronto, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

Blogging Photography Toronto

1980s photography street photography Toronto Toronto streets

Published March 3, 2019 by avardw

Street Scenes in New York City, 1983

5th Avenue and East 36th Street, New York, 1983, New York City, — 5th Avenue and East 36th Street, New York, 1983 – © Avard Woolaver

I have only been to New York City three times in my life, but each visit there holds vivid memories. It’s an interesting experience to walk around Manhattan with a camera–so much human activity and so many interesting buildings and sights. But I must admit that I never felt very comfortable there. From my Canadian perspective, large American cities seem dangerous and in 1983, New York City was a bit run down and dodgy in certain areas.

These photos were taken on a Ryerson school trip in early November, 1983. I used a Rollei 35S with Tri-X film and shot about six rolls of film over two days. I was looking for interesting scenes and bits of human interaction. Decades later when I scanned the negatives, I found information about the photos that I didn’t know at the time. For instance, the busker playing saxophone was an 18 year old Vincent Herring–a noted jazz saxophonist. Also the invasion of Grenada had just taken place–something I wasn’t really aware of at the time.

Looking at these photos makes me want to go back again, to capture new images and form new memories.