SHADOW and LIGHT: DARKROOM EDITION is a group exhibition celebrating the enduring power of analogue photography. This collection of Black and White images showcases the results of a specialized portrait workshop hosted by the Hart House Camera Club, at the University of Toronto where five photographers engaged in a rigorous three-hour studio and darkroom exercise in visual storytelling.
While the participants shared the same physical environment utilizing the same models, props, and lighting, the resulting images reveal the profound subjectivity of the creative eye. The exhibition acknowledges that perception is the architect of reality; though the space was shared, the experiences captured remain deeply personal and distinct… Perception becomes reality.
Central to this exhibition is the technical artistry of the wet darkroom. The final creative output relies on the delicate calibration of exposure, aperture, and contrast to translate a film negative into a finished print. Each frame serves as a moment punctuated in time, where the tactile manipulation of light and shadow is used to deliver the photographer’s specific vision and emotional voice.
The works displayed in this exhibition were developed during my 2025-2026 residency. As part of this residency, which supports The University of Toronto’s Hart House Camera Club artists in developing innovative darkroom expressions, I facilitated this workshop that married technical instruction and individual artistic exploration. With the incredible talent of these photographers who participated, this collaboration for ‘Shadow and Light: Darkroom Edition’ came to be.
This exhibition serves as a testament to the intersection of traditional darkroom practices and contemporary storytelling.
