The entrance to Ottawa’s School of the Photographic Arts (SPAO) might be hard to find, tucked away amidst the Byward Market, but it’s definitely worth the search.
The school’s most recent art exhibition Part Stradivarius / Part Scalpel incorporated what SPAO student Jason Champagne described as “a crazy mix of art forms.”
While most of the pieces were photography based, there was also a variety of sculptural, painted, collaged, and abstracted works. The gallery, which was warm and inviting, welcomed viewers to wander through the surrounding rooms or take a seat and peruse through old portfolios of student artwork.
Part Stradivarius / Part Scalpel featured 11 highly celebrated photo-based artists, each with their own personal and unique touch, that created a show of pure artistic vision and talent. Although they were not obligated, each artist chose to use traditional analogous techniques when creating their photos—the result being a personal, intimate collection of works.The collaboration of elegant portraits, unique photographs printed on glass plates, and unusual wax sculptures was an impressive spectacle.
One of the photographers featured, Stephanie Godin, was the sole second-year student whose work was on display. Notably, Godin’s photograph of a woman’s back was the only piece sold after the first day of the exhibit, with 50% of the proceeds going to SPAO, which is a not-for-profit career college.
While shows like the Part Stradivarius / Part Scalpel are fun and intriguing, the SPAO does of course do more than host charming art exhibits. The non-profit visual arts school offers a full time diploma program as well as a variety of interesting part-time studies designed to accommodate novice to advanced students.
These part-time programs are an important aspect of the school’s system because they invite participation from the community, aiming to teach the beauty of the photographical art form and advance the school’s motto, which is: “Vision, Content, Craft”.
The hope is that these programs and exhibits will help Ottawa’s ever-growing art scene to flourish. Champagne, who had participated in these part-time classes before enrolling in the diploma program, said it’s obvious how great SPAO’s programs are because they’re consistently “sending out established photographers who are doing great things.”
