Installed as a series of six oversize window graphics located on the street-facing side of East Campus Hall, 263 Phillip Street is a 25-minute walk from the Tamarack Drive neighbourhood where many of the images where taken. The window takeover expands the public presence of the gallery during lockdown while importantly providing a new context for the work Aaron Francis presents on Instagram under the hashtag Vintage Black Canada™. In curating his family’s archive of photography and slides he proudly represents a Caribbean-Canadian community that has traditionally been underrepresented in Waterloo, while connecting with the broader African diaspora across Canada.
Aaron T. Francis is a doctoral student at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, a multidisciplinary artist, and a curator. The former chair of the City of Kitchener’s Arts and culture advisory committee, Aaron has exhibited works from his Vintage Black Canada™ initiative at the BAND Gallery Toronto, the Gladstone Hotel, the Contact Photography Festival, the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) as well as with Ryerson University’s Fashion and Race Database.
instagram.com/vintageblackcanada
Special thanks to Jean Stevenson and Westmount Signs.
The gallery acknowledges the generous support of the Region of Waterloo Art Fund.