The album can give snapshots of certain moments in individual lives. It allows us to observe the mundane and vernacular with the critical lens of hindsight. How can we use the visual evidence of the personal to better understand our collective position?
In this workshop, Naqvi will discuss practical approaches for image makers to consider when working with a personal archive in relation to a larger body of work. She will examine strategies and boundaries that have been employed in her own art practice and those of others, and give participants prompts to consider when examining their materials.
Participants are encouraged to bring an archival image or series of images that they are hoping to further investigate. Please note that the term family can include inherited or chosen families.
Zinnia Naqvi is an interdisciplinary artist based in Tiohtià:ke/Montreal and Tkaronto/Toronto. Her work examines issues of colonialism, cultural translation, language, and gender through the use of photography, video, writing, and archival material. Recent works have included archival and re-staged images, experimental documentary films, video installations, graphic design, and elaborate still-lives. Her works often invite the viewer to question her process and working methods.
Naqvi’s work has been shown across Canada and internationally. She received an honourable mention at the 2017 Karachi Biennale in Pakistan, and is a recipient of the 2019 New Generation Photography Award organized by the Canadian Photography Institute of the National Gallery of Canada. She is member of EMILIA-AMALIA Working Group, an intergenerational feminist collective. Naqvi earned a BFA in Photography Studies from Ryerson University and an MFA in Studio Arts from Concordia University.
