Portraits of Courage

Stephanie Kretzschmer Tributes Toronto's Frontline Heroes

June 9, 2020

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Portraits of Courage

Creative responses to the strain of Covid-19 abound.  Stephanie Kretzschmer turned her personal experience into a photographic tribute of our frontline superheroes.  

In early April, at the advice of my doctor, I made a trip to the Humber River Hospital ER (all is good). I was very anxious and didn’t want to go because of Covid-19, but I had no choice. It turns out I had no reason to be afraid. I was well cared for and I am beyond grateful for the calm and professional attention I received from Hospital staff.

I observed many people that morning and I realized that while frontline workers are often talked about as a generic group, this important group is made up off many different and capable individuals who each has a story to tell. To show my appreciation, to give thanks and to give back to the community I’ve created a portrait series highlighting the people who put their lives at risk to help others.

I knew I would have to shoot fast and from a distance with no option for styling. Inspired by Irving Penn’s corner portraits series, I was intrigued to experience his theory: “This confinement, surprisingly seemed to comfort people, soothing them.“ I replaced flats with a canvas that I could set-up solo and over a period of three days photographed 240 individuals.

You can see the complete series here. Special thanks to: Joe Gorman, Margaret Gillis, Kyleigh Telford, Chris Bocking, Vivienne McCuaig, Jarret Anderson and the team at Film Plus Photo Supply.

This story is part of our Applied Arts community content outreach. If you have a story you'd like to share, email us at advancescoutdigital@gmail.com  

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