How do they shape our memories?
How do they mediate our experiences of migration?
What can they tell us about about our national histories?
THE FAMILY CAMERA NETWORK is a partnership that explores the relationship between photography and the idea of family. In Canada, our understanding of family has expanded in response to cultural shifts including same-sex marriage, transnational adoptions, dislocations due to political instability and war, and for economic opportunity. Our personal photographs document our feelings about family, how we define family, and how we stay connected to loved ones who may be separated as a result of these dislocations.
This project will create a public archive of family photographs and their stories at the Royal Ontario Museum. This archive will preserve a family history for future generations, as well as provide a resource for teachers, historians and scholars to write new histories of photography, family, and Canada.
Let us know if you have family photographs and stories you’d like to contribute to the archive.
- To understand the project in more detail, go to www.familycameranetwork.org. Please explore the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) section of that website.
- Like the project on Facebook.
- Follow the project on Twitter, @FamCamNetwork and #ROMfamcam
To participate, you must be: (1) over 18, (2) either a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, (3) willing to donate at least one photo, and (4) willing to be interviewed about your images.
This research is supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
The Family Camera Network is a three-year project (2016-2019) that brings together over 25 researchers and 6 cultural and educational institutions to conduct a multi-partner scholarly study of family photographs as a vital building block for understanding self, family, community, and nation.
The partners include Western University, The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), The Canadian Lesbian and Gay Archives (CLGA), Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, Ryerson University, and Yale University.
Click detail to enlarge.
*We are constantly in the process of enhancing our knowledge about family photographs in our collection. Information or concerns about any of these images will be responded to promptly.*