A National Human Rights Photography Exhibition

Points of View is a national juried human rights photography exhibition. Photographs appearing in the exhibition were crowd-sourced from people living in Canada. This exhibition is a way for Canadians to share their views on human rights with visitors from around the world.

The photographs in the exhibition explore human rights within four themes: Freedom of Expression, Reconciliation, Human Rights and the Environment, and Inclusion and Diversity.

Points of View opens in the summer of 2017 in the Level 1 Gallery.

Where did the photographs for Points of View come from?

From all across Canada!

We issued a Call for Entries in the fall of 2016. Photographers uploaded their images through an online portal. The submission deadline was December 31, 2016. We received more than 1,000 entries, made up of incredibly diverse images from all across Canada. 

How will you choose the photographs featured in the exhibition?

A diverse, multi-disciplinary jury selected the photographs for the exhibition. Jurors have wide-ranging backgrounds, in areas such as human rights, law, museum curation, photography, photojournalism and art. The jury also selected the overall winners for each category.

What is the People’s Choice award?

After the exhibition opens, people will have the opportunity to vote for the People’s Choice award. Voting will take place both in-gallery and online. The People’s Choice award will be announced in January 2018.

How did you choose the four themes for Points of View (Freedom of Expression, Reconciliation, Human Rights and the Environment, and Inclusion and Diversity)?

We set out to find themes that would lend themselves well to the visual medium of photography, and that would be broad enough to encourage entries with different interpretations and from diverse perspectives. We aimed for important human rights themes that would be both timeless, and critically current. These themes align well with the themes for Canada 150: diversity and inclusion, reconciliation from nation to nation with Indigenous peoples, the environment, and youth.

Why did you undertake Points of View?

As part of our celebration of Canada’s 150th, we wanted to develop an exhibition with the active involvement and participation of Canadians. Made up entirely of photographs submitted by members of the public, Points of View  captures how we view and experience human rights in Canada, and around the world, at this important milestone of our nation’s history.

What was your overall impression of the entries?

Collectively, the photographs for Points of View capture a large and diverse range of powerful human rights stories. They offer a mosaic of how Canadians see human rights issues at play in their lives, at home and abroad. Individually, some deal with topics that are easily recognizable as “human rights issues.” Others shine a light on stories where the human rights impact may be less obvious, but no less important. Our hope is that the insights offered by the photographs in Points of View will encourage people to reflect on human rights in ways they may have not considered before.