Brian Moore - 1985

Jacket Design - Nancy Etheredge (one of my fave covers ever)

Brian Moore - 25 August 1921 – 11 January 1999), was a novelist and screenwriter from Northern Ireland who emigrated to Canada and later lived in the United States. He was acclaimed for the descriptions in his novels of life in Northern Ireland during and after the Second World War, in particular his explorations of the inter-communal divisions of The Troubles, and has been described as "one of the few genuine masters of the contemporary novel. He was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize in 1975 and the inaugural Sunday Express Book of the Year award in 1987, and he was shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times (in 1976, 1987 and 1990). Moore also wrote screenplays and several of his books were made into films. Wikipedia

September the 30th was the Canadian National Day for Truth and Conciliation. There was a lot of hoopla but I had a special memory. Sometime in 1985 I photographed author Brian Moore. To prepare for my shoot I read his novel The Black Robe which was all about a Jesuit priest having contact with Algonquin’s in 17 Century New France. It is an amazing novel. Such was my impression that I decided to photograph Moore at the Holy Rosary Cathedral and it was my intention of making the photograph Gothic. Don Stanley was the Associate Editor of Vancouver Magazine who had assigned me to photograph Moore. I asked him to be in a doorway at the church. Since I used a flash on Moore I equipped Stanley with a little flash he had in his hand that had a trigger that would respond to my flash.

In those days, magazine art directors were pushy and wanted (always) something different. Thanks to them, in this case Rick Staehling, I shot one of my favourite author portraits that is not my usual tight close-up.

Arthur Erickson at the inauguration of the VAG 15 October 1983 - my photograph

I ask people on the street and even friends the following questions:

1. Who heads the Vancouver Art Gallery? – nobody seems to know

2. Who heads the Maritime Museum? Nobody knows and few have gone there in the last 10 years.

3. Where is the Morris and Helen Belkin Gallery? No answer.

4. Who heads the Museum of Anthropology? No answer.

5. When was the last time you went to the Contemporary Art Gallery? Few have gone.

6. What and where is MOV? Few know the answer.

7. Where is the Bill Reid Gallery? Most are not aware that there is one.

8. Who is the Musical Director of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra? About 2% know the answer.

9. What is the Turning Point Ensemble (they have been around 20 years)? Few know or know that it is based in the lovely basement hall of the Simon Fraser Downtown Campus.

10. Where is the Telus Theatre? Nobody seems to know that it is within the Chan Centre.

I tell all the people who do not know the above answers that it is not their fault. It is the fault of the institutions.

Years ago the head of the Maritime Museum, Jim Delgado (and American) would have lunchtime meetings with the American head of the Vancouver Art Gallery, Brooks Joyner (now deceased). They would discuss joint shows. I believe Americans know how to promote art institutions.

I think that with the demise of good Vancouver journalism, the culture content of CBC Radio is down as they must report the city and lower mainland news. We need to know about that bridge traffic. Culturally CBC Radio has Ideas, Reclaimed and The Debaters (they get away with lots because it is comedy. They discuss stuff that does not make it anywhere else).

When Vancouver had the CBC Radio Orchestra I would go to many of the concerts at Studio One. The sound was so good that I asked the man in charge, George Laverock (married to Jane Coop) to tell me about it. He said that there was not better sound studio in all of Canada and that it only competed with one in LA. I asked the the architect Paul Merrick (who designed the CBC and won a Governor General's Award for it). In a long email he explained the why. Now Studio One is used for Storage. Add to that, my favourite Merrick-designed skylights have been removed.

The Densification of Paul Merrick's CBC 

Furthermore Vancouver has become a tokenone-beautiful-building-place - The Marine Building. But what of what at one time was the most beautiful Mondrian inspired building in the world? The Dal Grauer Substation was designed by architect Ned Pratt & artist B.C. Binning

Photograph by Dal Jones

 Our high-ceiling Main Post Office where I would go to see if I could spot clouds up there has been virtually destroyed by Amazon. And what happened to those lovely steel postal boxes?

 Octavian's Marble

Anybody who has gotten this far will understand my frustration on how culture is disappearing in Vancouver. For at least 20 years clarinetist Gene Ramsbottom planned and hosted noon concerts at the Vancouver Art Gallery. I discovered young and very good musicians there.

I believe that as people age (I am 83) we disdain large concert halls. Pyatt Hall and the Orpheum Annex are perfect in size. The Queen Elizabeth Theatre and the Chan are, I think, white elephants.

Arthur Erickson built the lovely Vancouver Dance Centre on Davie and Granville. The only remaining dance company there is the Karen Jamieson Company as Ballet BC moved to Granville Island. Few might remember that Jamieson was one of the first choreographers to blend modern dance with Indigenous dance. 

Karen Jamieson

I asked a prominent announcer of CBC Radio if they would want to do an interview with Don Stewart about Macleod’s Books. I told the announcer that not only was this book store a Vancouver jewel it was also a Canadian one. Stewart has four stores for his books which amount to about 300,000. The answer was, “My producers are not interested.”

Don Stewart

My friend Neil Wedman in 1986 had a one-man show at the Vancouver Art Gallery of the largest pastels anybody had ever seen. Artist Richard Tetrault is a prolific muralist who has some of the most wonderful views of our Vancouver port. Tiko Kerr I must believe hardly sleeps as he is a non-stop artist. On June 9 photographer Alan Jacques died via MAID. He was one of the best b+w street photographers this city ever had. How many know of Fred Schiffer who I can state was the best Vancouver photographer of the 20^th century? I could go on. This city has no memory for its past or its artistic path.

To me it seems that poetry has disappeared in Vancouver. I have long chats every week on the phone with Canada's First Poet Laureate, George Bowering who is going to be 90 in December. I also chat with Belfast- born George McWhirter  who was Vancouver's first Poet Laureate. As a professor at UBC many learned to be good writers. They are ignored now but they will be adored once they are gone.

George Bowering

 

George McWhirter

And finally I will place here (again) the manifesto by architect Abraham Rogatnick (he died 28 August 2009 who had an intelligent opinion on why the VAG should stay put. I believe that part of the reason for the deadening of the VAG is that Robson Square is moribund. I used to go to many lectures at the Judge White Theatre there. Many that went were Counsellor Gordon Price, Arthur Erickson and Abraham Rogatnick. What happened? The taking over of Robson Square by the University of British Columbia was the final straw. The active restaurants there and the crowds are now gone.

One of the pleasures of going to the VAG at one time was to go to the upstairs cafeteria. The staff was friendly and the food was good. Now it is a SERIOUS restaurant. The charm is gone.

Here is Abraham Rogatnick’s manifesto. It is a link to my blog with it.

Manifesto for the VAG to Stay Put

Abraham Rogatnick

Dan Rutley - Psychotherapist and John Armstrong August 1987

Doctor Brian Ferris

Both my grandmother and mother were very good teachers. I married my Rosemary and she was a teacher. I was a high school teacher for many years and in Vancouver I taught in a couple of photography schools.

 As an obsolete, redundant, retired and inconsequential photographer I believe I have relevant and useful information embedded in my head that as I see in this century I will die with it.

What photographers lack in this century is the push of pushy art directors that make you do stuff you do not want. For a Western Living assignment, art director Christopher Dahl insisted that:

1. Print my own colur negatives in my darkroom.

2. Use mirrors to light my subjects.

3. Pick unusual locations.

Years before one day when we were living in Burnaby, my Rosemary told me, "Alex you complain about not being able to print colour negatives. I have signed you up to learn at Ampro Photo Workshops this Monday. You go." To this day having learned how to also print slides I am able to discern colour shifts in my colour pictures, both film and digital. Few photographers now have any idea what cyan or photographic blue are. Colour casts are then corrected by pressing Auto. That does not always work. 

I wrote about that, link below. In the case of John Armstrong (AKA Buck Cherry) I used Robson Square. For the photograph of Rutley I was alone on the Art Gallery roof so I had to put my camera on a tripod and use its self-timer while I pointed my mirror at Rutley’s face. In the Robson Street shot my friend and the writer of the piece, John Lekich is the one who pointed the mirror. 

Dan Rutley - Clinical Psychotherapist 

I am in dismay that photographers do not challenge themselves to shoot different and difficult. Photographic style has all but disappeared.

Just getting permission to go on the Art Gallery roof was challenging.

When I pulled the two 8x10 prints from my files I noted that in the back  had written the correct filtration for my enlarger colour head. 

Donnelly Rhodes

 

Fujfilm Instax 3 October 2025

My mother liked to wear pearls. She often told me that if she did not wear them often they would lose their lustre. Something like that I think applies to gearheads who collect cameras (they must be pristine) and never take pictures with them. They obsess with their features and where and when the cameras were made.

I have many cameras. Each one I purchased for a purpose. Because we arrived in Vancouver in 1975 and I had two very old cameras I bought better ones (I hate that modern word “upgrade’).  A Nikon FM-2 was a must as older Nikons did not flash sync at a higher 1/250 shutter speed. This kind of photography where you mix existing light with flash is called synchro-sunlight. My portrait here of actor Donnelly Rhodes is an example.

Today I noticed my Fujifilm Instax instant camera. I have not used it for a few years. I had forgotten how to use it. I went to Beau Photo and Nicole taught me all about it. When I arrived home I shot a selfie in my guest bathroom. Nicole suggested I use the camera to photograph Niño and Niña.             

My Dear Rosemary,

Six minutes before you died you asked, “Am I dying?” I was unable to answer. The tragedy of your death is that both of us knew and I know that we will never meet again.

I started this blog in 2006 and I was confused as to what it was. Through these years I have come to the conclusion that it really is an old fashioned “Dear Diary”. It is irrelevant who reads it. I only wish our daughters and granddaughters would dip into them with some frequency as so much of our history, you and me, and them is in it.

At the very least I like to explore those 52 years that you and I had together. I am able to explore because thanks to your financial acumen I have no worries. My only obligations are to feed Niño and Niña and deal with the daily menialities.

When I walk Niño, taking the route you take I can hear you telling me, “Alex, don’t shout at him when he lingers. Be patient." Because you died almost 5 years ago (9 December 2020), your voice has almost faded from my memory.

Fortunately our mutual Argentine friend, Fernando Velazco, video-taped you at the Hotel Claridge in Buenos Aires. He asked you about you in relation to me being a photographer. You have no idea what it is to see you and to hear your voice.

Fernando's Tape 

Because of that tape today I thought, when I put all the bed clothes to be washed what you would tell me when we got out of the bed in the morning, “Alex let’s make the bed neat for the cats.” I can now hear that in your voice in my head. Also, “Alex the kitty litter box smells. We have to change it.”

You met my abuelita before she died and you knew how she championed the words of St. Luke, “Do this in remembrance of me.” Everything I do, every day, I dedicate to your memory. I remove the little dish from the cupboard for my morning breakfast and I think that we bought the set together. I am melancholic when I take my breakfast up in the Filipino wicker tray I bought at Eaton’s. It is impossible for me not to think that we had a daily breakfast in bed for at least 25 years and that we shared the hard copy New York Times and the Vancouver Sun. I must add here, Rosemary that the Sun is thin and quite boring.

Of late when I go to sleep I am most aware of that empty spot on the bed that was yours. Niña or Niño compete as to who will lie there. My dreams often involve your presence. When I wake up they are gone and I cannot remember them.

With politics and the world order in disarray I often think what our friend Abraham Rogatnick said three months before he died, “Alex, I am not long for this world. I am glad.” I am not sure about that glad. While I am alive I can remember your presence, now an absent one, but once I am in my oblivion even that will be gone.

Rosemary, I miss you and I love everything about you. For as long as I can, I will keep our garden looking as good as I can, knowing that you would have done a better job.

I am sure, if by magic you could come back, Niño and Niña would instantly remember you. They are, every day, a connection to you. When they stare at me I always think, "They are looking at me and they are telling me that they miss you too.”

While my will to live is not all that strong, our cats, and particularly Niño who stares at me, I know he is thinking, "Alex you have to stay alive. Who would take care of us if you are gone?"

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