Uploaded February 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
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Jeff Thomas is a 2019 winner of the Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts. Directed by Pixie Cram.
Co-production of the Canada Council for the Arts and Saw Video Media Arts Centre. Presentation of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Independent Media Arts Alliance
The Canada Council for the Arts is a federal, arm's-length Crown corporation created by an Act of Parliament in 1957 (Canada Council for the Arts Act) "to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts."
For more information, visit: ggavma.canadacouncil.ca
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Transcript:
Think about what it would be like for someone... to have somebody come and say, “I want to take your photograph, but I’m not going to tell you what it’s going to be used for.” So how do you connect to those faces? And why did they pose for Edward Curtis? These were all questions I wanted to answer. I couldn’t answer them, because I couldn’t talk to them.
I’ve always felt that photography can be used to heal the Indigenous experience, because we come from a colonial history of erasure, and the camera really became my battleground in that sense.
In terms of how it represents and plays with the Wampum belt, is the storyteller. And so each panel that I produce has a story based on certain elements. And as an archivist, captions are a very important part of that, so all the information that I have about the photographs, about their historical or my imagery, is included in the caption, along with a story that I call a travelogue.
And this one here is the new one that I’m using for the next series of work.
I’ve always felt a bit self-conscious about it, taking these little plastic toys out and photographing them, because I get some pretty strange looks sometimes. I remember one time a non-Indigenous guy came up to me and he said, “You know, I looked at these photographs, and I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.” And I said, “That’s the perfect response, because it’s supposed to have both of those in there.” So I went up to the monument and I photographed the Indian figure, and I didn’t photograph Champlain.
People started coming up and posing for me on the platform. But that was the idea—it was a bit of a performance piece. Greg Hill was actually the first person that took part in it. What you choose to photograph is so fundamental to having a voice. I like working with all people. To me it’s just not about being Indigenous, it’s about being human beings. And if we can get to the point where we all respect that in each other, then maybe the world will be a little better at that point. We have to hope.
Please like this video and subscribe to support the arts in Canada.
Jeff Thomas is a 2019 winner of the Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts. Directed by Pixie Cram.
Co-production of the Canada Council for the Arts and Saw Video Media Arts Centre. Presentation of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Independent Media Arts Alliance
The Canada Council for the Arts is a federal, arm's-length Crown corporation created by an Act of Parliament in 1957 (Canada Council for the Arts Act) "to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts."
For more information, visit: ggavma.canadacouncil.ca
****
Transcript:
Think about what it would be like for someone... to have somebody come and say, “I want to take your photograph, but I’m not going to tell you what it’s going to be used for.” So how do you connect to those faces? And why did they pose for Edward Curtis? These were all questions I wanted to answer. I couldn’t answer them, because I couldn’t talk to them.
I’ve always felt that photography can be used to heal the Indigenous experience, because we come from a colonial history of erasure, and the camera really became my battleground in that sense.
In terms of how it represents and plays with the Wampum belt, is the storyteller. And so each panel that I produce has a story based on certain elements. And as an archivist, captions are a very important part of that, so all the information that I have about the photographs, about their historical or my imagery, is included in the caption, along with a story that I call a travelogue.
And this one here is the new one that I’m using for the next series of work.
I’ve always felt a bit self-conscious about it, taking these little plastic toys out and photographing them, because I get some pretty strange looks sometimes. I remember one time a non-Indigenous guy came up to me and he said, “You know, I looked at these photographs, and I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.” And I said, “That’s the perfect response, because it’s supposed to have both of those in there.” So I went up to the monument and I photographed the Indian figure, and I didn’t photograph Champlain.
People started coming up and posing for me on the platform. But that was the idea—it was a bit of a performance piece. Greg Hill was actually the first person that took part in it. What you choose to photograph is so fundamental to having a voice. I like working with all people. To me it’s just not about being Indigenous, it’s about being human beings. And if we can get to the point where we all respect that in each other, then maybe the world will be a little better at that point. We have to hope.
