2024 Verant Richards Award recipient Emily Guitar explores intimate portraits of mental health, feminism and sex work inspired by first-person experience and historical research. Seeking to catalyze dialogue and advocate for policy that prioritizes the rights and dignity of sex workers, the series Sex Work is Work intersects technology, economics and gender politics—inviting reflection on the broader socio-historical context shaping the landscape of contemporary sex work.
The Verant Richards Award is awarded annually to an OCADU graduating student for excellence in experimental photography. Verant Richards was a graduate of OCADU and a founding member of Gallery 44, known for his innovative artistic practice that pushed beyond the confines of a self-limiting definition of photography.
Emily Guitar is a photo-based artist exploring mental health, feminism and sex work. Inspired by her experiences with addiction and sex work, as well as her research based on the history of sex work and mental health treatments, Guitar creates work that pushes its audience to question their understanding of these marginalized communities through representation that is honest and vulnerable.
