By Amira Elghawaby
The year was 1950. Quebec was being governed by Maurice Duplessis, a conservative leader who appealed to the rural majority with his firm emphasis on religion and tradition. It was during this time that a young American woman would travel to the province to bring back photographs for Vogue magazine.
Lida Moser’s photographs vividly captured the essence of Quebec, says Pierre Dessureault, curator at the Museum of Contemporary Photography. That’s why her works are currently being showcased at the museum as part of the exhibit, Exchanging Views: Quebec 1939 – 1970.
Sixty black and white images make up this exhibition and belong to a variety of photographers. The photographs are meant to offer a diversity of views, says Dessureault.
“They all bring a different angle of Quebec, the point was to juxtapose these angles,” he says.
The exhibit marks the 60th anniversary of the National Film Board and the year of the documentary. Many of the photographs used in the exhibit were found in the National Film Board’s archives.
The exhibit consists of an eclectic mix of photographs of life in Quebec between 1939 and 1970 intended to depict Quebec as a “society in flux,” according to the introduction to the exhibit.
The photographs are displayed in a chronological order. Images of a calm, rural setting are exquisitely captured by photographers Paul Strand and Albert Tessier in the late 1930s. Romeo Gariepy captures the importance of religion in the province with a brilliant photo of a priest sitting with Duplessis, an image reflective of the union between politics and religion at the time.
Following the end of the Duplessis era in 1960, the newly elected Liberal government began massive social reforms which included separating the powers of church and state. This marked the beginning of what would later be the “Quiet Revolution.”
This revolution would see the emergence of a more fervent nationalism among the province’s francophone population, a shift away from the old traditions and a questioning of Quebec’s identity within Canada.
Images of labour strikes, flag-waving rallies and Native culture paint a picture of Quebec as it struggled to redefine itself.
All of this is demonstrated in the exhibit, captured by a variety of both French and foreign photographers including Sam Tata, Gabor Szilazi and Jean-Paul Morisset.
Natalie Morisset, Jean-Paul Morisset’s daughter, says she found the exhibit especially touching. She had never before seen the displayed photos taken by her father though his photographs often “kicked around” her childhood home. She says she was surprised by the style and depth of the two photos of French architecture.
“I love the effects he achieved. The whole exhibit makes me see images of Quebec that I’d never seen before,” says the Quebec native.
Daniele Testelin, a local photographer, was also impressed with the showing.
She says the exhibit offers rare insight into the day-to-day life of the traditional culture of Quebec.
“To be able to encapsulate life by simple means is remarkable. They are flashes of life,” she says.
Missing from the exhibit are images from Expo ’67 where French President Charles de Gaulle’s famous remark “Vive le Quebec libre!” was proclaimed. There are no pictures of the FLQ crisis either.
Dessureault says he hasn’t ever seen any interesting photos of either of these events and besides, “The exhibition doesn’t focus on events, it focuses on the people and culture and way of life and values shared by a group of people.”
The exhibition runs until May 16. Admission is free.