Sterling Presence: The Silver Water Collective

Christina Leslie and Marcie Kindred

Figure 5, Marcie Kindred, Chapel, 2021

As technology continues to connect the world, it seemed only natural that a digital photographic collective could emerge. Spanning across Canada and the U.S, technology was the bridge that brought us together.

Silver Water Collective was not initiated with a hug or a handshake. In fact we had only ever met virtually during online classes via Zoom while pursuing our MFA degrees at the Savannah College of Art and Design.

We started off supporting each other through the hurdles of grad school but as time progressed, we found ourselves wanting to be a part of something larger than just being classmates. Presently, the collective is a group of ten female photographers who are connected in fostering a sense of community that is not bound by region, background, or philosophy, and serve as a springboard for ideas that stimulate and encourage one another in our creative endeavours.

Figure 3, Christina Leslie, Sugar Coat: Hope and Present, 2022

Our debut exhibition titled Sterling Presence is part of the Toronto, Scotiabank Contact Photography Festival, 2022.

The exhibition explores themes of history, memory, identity, time, decolonization, and perception. Each artist represented approaches her work with a distinct process and technique that pushes the boundaries of traditional photography. Even though each artist comes from a different background and mindset, the process of photography allows them to express their collective internal struggles as women in modern society.

The work spans a variety of material and photographic processes, but it finds commonality as it cross-references between themes in process-based contemporary art.