This website deals with places of worship across the world, the majority of them in Manitoba, Canada.
Origins
The photographing in Manitoba is an ongoing project that began about 35 years ago, with the ultimate goal of publishing a book or books. I am often asked how it began, and why. I do know why the project is continuing, but how it began is another story.
There was no flash of lightning or roll of thunder to announce my decision to take pictures of disappearing things. It was, instead, a series of experiences transformed into photographs. That began when I took pictures of anything and everything that caught my fancy. I still do. Although I was not intentionally selecting the bygone, my photographs showed something else: the focus was on neglected and crumbling buildings – historic or otherwise – especially places of worship.
Motivation
My regular employment in Manitoba took me to places in the province I had not been to before, and that’s where I found them, falling apart, abandoned, and perhaps forgotten. And quite often on a subsequent visit there would be no trace of them. Sometimes a remnant confirmed that there was once something here that many had visited, and many had loved. And now those who may have missed what’s gone were missing too.
I feel it is incumbent on those who have the opportunity to nurture the memories since the reality is gone. Hence my pictures and the stories they would tell.
Background
I was born in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) whose history parallels that of ancient civilisations. Yet in those times the preservation of archaeological relics was not feasible. Since then, however, several sites have been restored not just for the sake of national pride but to attract the visitor. The Dowa Rock Temple dating back to the first century BC is one such place.
Here in Canada, with the opportunity available, I can photograph old places that should be seen by more. Not nearly as ancient as the ones back home, but old enough for Canada.
Acknowledgment
What has been done so far would never have been done if not for my wife. She was my constant cheerleader. She was also a hard taskmaster, and a very diligent record keeper whose handwritten notes on 5″ x 3″ cards are invaluable sources of firsthand information. We travelled together in fair weather and in foul, even in a snowstorm on one occasion, but we found much in our search even then.
The proposed book is for my wife, and in a way it is for me as well for as I continue to grow older it becomes even more evident that much remains to be done.
The tentative title for the book is Of Wood and Stone: Manitoba’s 19th Century Churches. The existing travelling exhibition is Testaments of Faith: Manitoba’s Pioneer Churches.
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