AGO's Camera Atomica Exhibition Review
The Art Gallery of Ontario continues its
'Year of Photography' with one its latest exhibitions,
Camera Atomica. Featuring photographs that encompass the post-war period of the bombings in Japan in 1945 to the Faukushima meltdowns in 2011,
Camera Atomica is both amazing and disturbing, touching on issues surrounding nuclear energy through the art of photography.
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| From Crystal Palace, 2013 by Ken and Julia Yonetani |
Over 200 works are represented including both vintage and contemporary photographs taken by a variety of photographers from different fields.
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| US Military, Operation Priscilla, Nevada Test Site, 1957 |
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| The First Photograph of Bones of the Hand by Wilhelm Rontgen, 1895 |
The exhibit opens with a chandelier installation, which is part of the
Crystal Palace Collection made out of 31 antique chandeliers refitted with uranium glass and UV lighting, symbolizing the 31 nuclear nations of the world. The exhibit is arranged into different themes and explores nuclear weapons proliferation, toxic waste disposal, and the effects on people and the climate. The exhibit ends with a
'discussion room' made to look like a fallout shelter, filled with posters, and a world map showing all the nuclear stations over the years.
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| Photographs taken by The Photographic Group of the US Air Force of above-ground Nuclear test sites (1946-62) by Michael Light, 2003 |
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| Bombhead, 1989/2002 by Bruce Connor |
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| Radioactive Cats, 1980 by Sandy Skoglund |
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| Main Street, Okuma, Exclusion Zone, March 30, 2011 by Donald Weber |
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| View of Forest from Dental Hospital, Pripyat, October 2012 by David McMillan |
Camera Atomica is an emotionally charged exhibit that reminds us
of the horrors and amazing discoveries of the past and our
responsibility to govern what can and may happen in the present and
future. I highly recommend this stunning exhibit.
Camera Atomica runs until November 15, 2015. Please visit AGO for more information.
P.s!: This exhibit is included with general admission, which makes it free on Wednesday nights! And while visiting the AGO, don't forget to go to the tower to see the stunning Elevated exhibit.
P.s,
Melanie!
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