Position As Desired: Exploring African Canadian Identity / Photographs from the Wedge Collection

Participating artists: Yannick Anton, Buseje Bailey, Jon Blak, Deanna Bowen, Sandra Brewster, Michael Chambers, Erika Defreitas, Pete Doherty, Stan Douglas, Stella Fakiyesi, Fred Herzog, Anique Jordan, Christina Leslie, Jalani Morgan, Megan Morgan, Zanele Muholi, Dawit L. Petros, Kara Springer, Stacey Tyrell, David Zapparoli and In The Black Canada Collective: Nina Aning, Donna Paris, Sonia Godding Togobo.

Position As Desired: Exploring African Canadian Identity / Photographs from the Wedge Collection is the first major exhibition to examine the history, movement and experiences of African Canadians through contemporary photography. This touring exhibition was co-organized with the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto) where it first opened in 2010, before travelling to The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 (Halifax) in 2013. Conceived and organized by Windsor-born art collector Kenneth Montague, the exhibition presents a wide variety of photographic works from his personal archive – the Wedge Collection – ranging from rare vintage portraits of the first African immigrants to Canada to contemporary works by established artists. Through works by established and emerging artists as well as a commissioned video work by the collective In the Black Canada – a video based on a series of interviews with members of Windsor’s Black community – the exhibition attempts to instigate a conversation about the experiences of African Canadians within the context of Canada’s 150th anniversary.

“From the early days of my collecting, I recognized the importance of creating a space for African Canadian artists. While there are many other stories to be told beyond those selected for this exhibition, I hope that this intimate and subjective collection of works will provide a forum for contemplation and further the discussion of how we all feel about our own Canadian experience.”

– Kenneth Montague, Curator