Fine Art
Artist Statement
For nearly 20-years I have been a documentary photographer and portraitist though recently my practice took a turn and is now leaning towards performance art with myself as the focus.
In my personal practice I constantly push my own physical and artistic boundaries in order to challenge my craft. For my project I, Voyageur…In Search of Frances Anne Hopkins I went on a 70-day canoe trip dressed in 19th century period costume following in the footsteps of the relatively unknown British painter. Utilizing a variety of photographic practices including alternative processes, analog and video and exhibiting ephemera from the journey such as my dress and canoe, I create a mythological world where I cross in and out of Frances Anne’s life.
As a middle-aged woman I’ve begun experiencing my diminished importance not just within the art world, but from society as a whole. All industries within Western culture reward fleeting youth and beauty at the expense of everyone else. At my age, I not only deal with gender disparity, but ageism as well. By giving once invisible women like Frances Anne a voice, I empower their legacies and my own.
Accolades include the FUAM Book Dummy Award for Haddon Hall in 2019, a Canada Council for the Arts’ “New Chapter’” Grant in 2017, a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in 2013, a Long-Term Career Advancement Grant from the Canada Council in 2012, and the 2001 International Prize for Young Photojournalism from Agfa/Das Bildforum. When not in the studio you can find Naomi walking her dog Maggie or curling, a sport she’s recently embraced.
From the series I, Voyageur…In Search of Frances Anne Hopkins, 2018
From the series I, Voyageur…In Search of Frances Anne Hopkins, 2018
From the series I, Voyageur…In Search of Frances Anne Hopkins, 2018