1990

Donna James

Ain’t I A Woman

Artist

Donna James

Curator

Glace W. Lawrence

Location

A Space, Toronto

A solo photography exhibition of 12 photographs and two composite photographs of newspaper companion advertisements. The women are photographed casually engaged in everyday activities that challenge the blatant objectification of black women captured in the personal advertisements.

 

Photography as a medium is unusual in its ability to preserve images in time, giving them the illusion of treasures saved. The photographs in the exhibition are my acknowledgement of black women as singular treasures.

The exhibition was my 'call and response' to the commodification of desire expressed in companion personal advertisements that I collected over a number of years from Canadian newspapers.

 

The Collection

Artist

Donna James

Donna James is an Ottawa based multi-disciplinary artist known for her video and photographic body of work, which spans over 30 years.