Canadian Portraits | http://canadianportraits.concordia.ca

JONATHAN WOODS Emma Kreiner

Wayfinders, 2011, Jonathan Woods.

Canadian Portraits | http://canadianportraits.concordia.ca

Jonathan Woods is a photography student at Concordia University whose work takes a

critical approach to the social construction and “upkeep” of society and its

institutions, as they regulate daily life. Woods’ work employs sarcasm, irony and

satire to expose the absurdities of social and urban life. He has exhibited his

photographs in two Art Matters festivals, the inaugural ASFASA festival, last year’s

Photo 400 (SILVER) publication, and, most recently, in two group shows at Joyce

Yahouda Gallery in the Belgo building.

Jonathan Woods’ photograph, Wayfinders, (2011) initially appears as an architectural

study, but upon closer examination, one becomes aware of the interactional dialogues

with social frameworks and constructs. Wood’s work speaks to a Situationalist

awareness of the human experience, and plays upon the fragility and tension of daily

experiences. In this image Woods’ depicts the possibilities of rupture in public space

in a cross-Canadian context, particularly in the gaps between the dynamic city of

Montreal, and his quiet hometown of Victoria, British Columbia. A sense of human

insignificance and alienation in both urban and suburban landscapes permeate the

photograph.