ArtWalk in Little Italy: The SPAO Centre’s Public Art Initiative is a First for Canada
Partnership leads to innovation in Public Art
This Spring 2023, the SPAO Photographic Arts Centre in partnership with Ottawa’s Preston Street BIA, will debut the SPAO Photo Walk, an outdoor public art initiative like no other in Canada.
The SPAO Photo Walk will be an ongoing and evolving outdoor installation featuring large-scale photographic artworks designed to enhance Ottawa’s Little Italy, draw attention to local businesses and engage with residents and tourists alike. Participants can access information and the map for a self guided tour via QR codes located next to each artwork, providing opportunities to learn more about the artists, the neighbourhood, and participating businesses. The photographs will be selected from a nationwide open call and by an assessor jury made up of nationally recognized industry leaders.
“The SPAO Photographic Arts Centre is thrilled to partner with the Preston Street BIA in order to share diverse and exciting photographic artworks from across Canada with the community we love and enhance the neighbourhood we call home," says Jonathan Hobin.
A Renowned Jury of Arts Professionals
The SPAO Photo Walk Jurors include: Ann Thomas (former Chief Curator of the National Gallery of Canada), Robert Steven (Director of the Portrait Gallery of Canada), Frédéric Loury (Founder of Art Souterrain in Montreal), Sylvia Dreaver (Emerging Curator of Indigenous Art at the Canadian Museum of History), and renowned photo based artist Sandra Brewster.
Photography is Critical to Canadian Cultural Discourse
Engaging with the photographic arts and its diverse voices is one of the most vital ways to understand contemporary culture and develop artistic literacy. The SPAO Photo Walk will support, highlight and raise the voices of contemporary artists at all levels, producing nuanced discourse about the visual complexity and multitude of approaches to Canadian photography.
Submissions are now open for inclusion in the SPAO Photo Walk! Photo-based artists from anywhere in Canada at any level are encouraged to apply! The submission deadline is April 6th, 2023 by 11:59pm EST.
About SPAO
SPAO is one of Canada’s foremost Photographic Arts Centre, housing the only two-year photographic arts college in Canada, numerous recreational part-time classes, a unique international artist residency and the only critical and independent gallery in the region dedicated to lens-based art.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Katie Lydiatt, Gallery ManagerEmail: gallery@spao.caTel: 613-562-3824For access to images: visit shorturl.at/awxC7 or click here.