ABANDON: BAFFIN ISLAND
Exhibiting at Lens Factory Gallery (1040 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON) from December 1-31, 2009. Regular opening hours through December are Wed-Sat, 11-6.
Opening reception: Thursday, December 3, 2009 from 6-10 pm
On April 1st this year, Nunavut Territory celebrated its 10th birthday. It was a bittersweet party -- celebrating a new political entity that emphasizes the lives and priorities of Inuit -- just as social issues, economic hardship, political mishap and escalating rates of suicide and violence are quickly reaching crisis point. This only adds to the challenge of climate change, which continues its devastating impact on the Arctic environment.
Over the course of many weeks in various Baffin Island communities, I had a variety of amazing experiences that ranged from hopeful and uplifting to bleak and entirely morbid. I photographed the best and worst of what I saw: proud Northern culture, amazing people and magnificent landscapes, contrasted with themes of immense hardship, ruined potential, self destruction and death.
ABANDON: BAFFIN ISLAND is a story of politics, culture and ecology in the furthest reaches of Canada's far North. It is also a continuation of my previous ABANDON exhibit, examining the successes and struggles of a society in connection with the loss and destruction of their natural environment.
January 1, 2010
Effective immediately, I am retiring from weddings and commercial photography so I can focus on my documentary work. Thanks for the good run everyone :) And happy 2010!
October 30, 2009
ABANDON: BAFFIN ISLAND will be showing through December 1-31, 2009 at Lens Factory Gallery (1040 Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario).
An opening reception will be held on Thursday, December 3, 2009 from 6-10 pm.
This collection of 40 photos tells a story of politics, culture and ecology in Canada's far North. It is a continuation of my previous ABANDON exhibit, examining the successes and struggles of a society in connection with the loss and destruction of their natural environment.
August 24, 2009
I'm back from Baffin Island and got a series of photos I'm extremely happy with. Abandon: Baffin Island is still scheduled for December 2009 in Toronto and I'll post more details as things come together.
I've spent the last few weeks releasing my heavy metal collection onto Creative Commons. There's still a long way to go, but you can see a huge portion on my flickr page:
www.flickr.com/photos/markcoatsworth
May 27, 2009
I've released my back catalog of heavy metal photography (dating back to 2001) under a Creative Commons license.
You can find the pictures here:
www.flickr.com/photos/markcoatsworth
Many of these were uploaded in lower resolution, so when I'm back from Baffin Island later this summer I'll start to re-upload in full res. In the meantime, enjoy!
March 2, 2009
More exciting news -- I've secured a gallery for an upcoming exhibition! Abandon: Baffin Island will be showing at Lens Factory in downtown Toronto in December 2009. This show will be a sequel to my previous Abandon exhibit, continuing to explore the aftermath of environmental collapse, this time focused on the communities and landscapes of Baffin Island in Arctic Canada.
January 25, 2009
I will be continuing my Abandon series on Baffin Island in Canada's Nunavut territory this spring/summer. I'm hoping to follow this with an exhibit in late 2009 or early 2010. Check back here for further details!
