About
In March of 2020 my book Borderlands was published by Frontenac House Ltd. The book is a photographic discourse on the country that straddles the forty-ninth parallel from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains to the grasslands of Saskatchewan and to the western Dakotas. It depicts the land metaphorically as a river of time with tributaries of history and disparate cultures flowing in discontinuous moments of consciousness. It is a portrayal of a land where you can feel the wind blow the dust of ages, a place of melancholic beauty, an oasis of solitudes. As a component of a larger project, it draws upon an awareness of the histories enacted on the land leading me on a course of artistic and personal exploration toward the intersection of pasts and the present.
Many years ago the natural flow of goods and ideas on the northern Great Plains was oriented north and south. With the creation of the 49th parallel, the international boundary effectively cut off this natural flow. Borderlands Project explores the historical ramifications of the border and more generally, the concept of borders from an artist’s point of view. As an immigrant, I understand liminal states, of being not one nor the other until conscious choices are made.
Borderlands has taken five years of research, photography and travel to produce and two years to get published. It now offers the opportunity to expand creative boundaries and explore new areas by employing my interdisciplinary skills to share my work with people in the community, via exhibitions, publication, social media and presentations. Going forward, the book and a future exhibition of art curated from it will further engage the public in the formation of a circle of art. In return, discussions arise; ideas and concepts evolve, creativity begins anew. Although my home is Calgary, Alberta, Canada the reach of this project is international and interest has been expressed south of the border in presenting the work in conjunction with university Prairie Studies programs. This will allow me to return to the smaller communities in the borderlands to exhibit and talk about my work and engage the communities where the work began.
By definition, the artist has a relationship with their work, but growth as an artist occurs when the artist/artwork relationship is reflected in how other people look at the work. Whereas my book Borderlands explores the varied aspects and concepts of borders and will be widely available, the Borderlands Project will expand on my interdisciplinary art by making art accessible and engaging with people in smaller communities, thereby completing the circle of art.
About the Artist:
The eye is an inveterate collector. ~ Walker Evans
The art of photographer, media producer, and mixed media artist Mark Vitaris is sweeping in style and scope. Through his art, he preserves that which is ephemeral. He believes there is an intimate connection between the forms his art takes and the circumstances from which it derives.
For much of his professional and artistic career, location photography has been his chosen métier. His work is project-based, honed from decades of professional assignments employing natural light and conditions to interpret visual concepts.
His art is also projected-based and interdisciplinary. Five years of research and travel has gone into the production of his current project, Borderlands, the book of the same title being a key aspect of this endeavor.
Vitaris earned a B.A. in Communications, from the University of Ottawa (Canada). His award winning work has been widely exhibited and is included in private and public collections provincially, nationally, and internationally. He resides in Calgary, Alberta.
Many years ago the natural flow of goods and ideas on the northern Great Plains was oriented north and south. With the creation of the 49th parallel, the international boundary effectively cut off this natural flow. Borderlands Project explores the historical ramifications of the border and more generally, the concept of borders from an artist’s point of view. As an immigrant, I understand liminal states, of being not one nor the other until conscious choices are made.
Borderlands has taken five years of research, photography and travel to produce and two years to get published. It now offers the opportunity to expand creative boundaries and explore new areas by employing my interdisciplinary skills to share my work with people in the community, via exhibitions, publication, social media and presentations. Going forward, the book and a future exhibition of art curated from it will further engage the public in the formation of a circle of art. In return, discussions arise; ideas and concepts evolve, creativity begins anew. Although my home is Calgary, Alberta, Canada the reach of this project is international and interest has been expressed south of the border in presenting the work in conjunction with university Prairie Studies programs. This will allow me to return to the smaller communities in the borderlands to exhibit and talk about my work and engage the communities where the work began.
By definition, the artist has a relationship with their work, but growth as an artist occurs when the artist/artwork relationship is reflected in how other people look at the work. Whereas my book Borderlands explores the varied aspects and concepts of borders and will be widely available, the Borderlands Project will expand on my interdisciplinary art by making art accessible and engaging with people in smaller communities, thereby completing the circle of art.
About the Artist:
The eye is an inveterate collector. ~ Walker Evans
The art of photographer, media producer, and mixed media artist Mark Vitaris is sweeping in style and scope. Through his art, he preserves that which is ephemeral. He believes there is an intimate connection between the forms his art takes and the circumstances from which it derives.
For much of his professional and artistic career, location photography has been his chosen métier. His work is project-based, honed from decades of professional assignments employing natural light and conditions to interpret visual concepts.
His art is also projected-based and interdisciplinary. Five years of research and travel has gone into the production of his current project, Borderlands, the book of the same title being a key aspect of this endeavor.
Vitaris earned a B.A. in Communications, from the University of Ottawa (Canada). His award winning work has been widely exhibited and is included in private and public collections provincially, nationally, and internationally. He resides in Calgary, Alberta.