Malak Karsh, Library and Archives Canada
Library and Archives Canada has acquired the photo archives of the late Malak Karsh, the famed photographer — and brother of fellow Canadian photography legend Yousuf Karsh — best known for touristy photos of tulips, museums and postcard-type scenes.
On the 100th anniversary of his birth, Canada’s late “tulip king” has left a legacy to Ottawa in the form of 200,000 of his photographs.
Library and Archives Canada acquired an extensive collection of transparencies, negatives and prints from one of the capital’s most famed photographers, Malak Karsh.
This is a major acquisition for Library and Archives Canada, as Malak – who died in 2001 at age 86 – contributed significantly to the country’s heritage and culture during his more than 50 year-long career.
Younger brother of the world-renowned Ottawa portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh, Malak made the decision early to be identified professionally by only his first name so as not to be confused with his brother.
An architectural, industrial and landscape photographer, Malak is best known for capturing the Gatineau Hills, Ottawa’s tulips and the Parliamentary Precinct, along with several additional Centretown sites such as the Ottawa River and Canadian Museum of Nature.
“Malak’s depiction of Ottawa and other parts of the country have been influential in the shaping of Canada’s view of itself and the visual identity we show to others,” says Richard Provencher, the library’s head of media relations.
Most notably, Malak brought international fame to Ottawa with his photos of tulip beds and inspired the Ottawa Board of Trade to establish the Canadian Tulip Festival in 1952.
“I always call him the king of tulips,” says Michel Gauthier, former executive director of Ottawa’s Tulip Festival and a friend of Malak’s.
Gauthier, who managed the Tulip Festival for 15 years, witnessed the very beginning of Malak’s legacy.
“His tulips are important not just because they are tulips, but because they document our landscape and heritage.”
Today, the Canadian Tulip Festival continues to be the largest of its kind in the world, attracting more than 500,000 visitors from across the globe annually.
While Malak is recognized for his photographs of tulips, Provencher says the images from the latest acquisition reflect Malak’s extensive travels across Canada between 1968 and 2001. A great addition to the mostly black-and-white collection Library and Archives Canada acquired in 1985 from Malak.
Originally of Armenian descent, Malak fled from Turkey and immigrated to Canada in 1937 following his brother. Where Karsh took photos of Winston Churchill and Ernest Hemingway, Malak’s appreciation was for all things uniquely Canadian.
“Every photograph of his was a photo of the country he adopted,” says Gauthier. “I’ve seen Malak lay flat on the ground, trying to take photos of buildings, streets, flowers . . . everything he saw, he saw from a different angle.”
Library and Archives Canada is currently in the process of digitizing Malak’s photographs for the public to view online. A small selection of Malak’s photos is already available.
Gauthier says it’s a shame there isn’t an exhibition to celebrate the centennial of such a great Canadian artist, but he knows it’s not the end of Malak’s legacy.
“I think when people discover his photos, they will discover Canada as it evolved.”