For the last several years I have been making photographs about Canadian identity. Although I have done four very different bodies of work based on this theme, I am best known for the Group of Seven Awkward Moments. In that series, reproductions of paintings by famous historical painters Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven were used as backdrops to dioramas I then photographed. It was through the use of the collective’s iconic northern landscapes, which have come to symbolize Canada as a nation, combined with scenes of accidents, disasters, and bad choices that give the work its edge.
Canadians and Americans (Best Friends Forever…it’s Complicated) also deals with Canadian identity, but through the lens of American pop culture. In this series, famous reprodutions of American paintings were used as backdrops, and the scenes in the foreground reflect isses of similarity and difference.
The employment of black humour is common in most of my work, which can be seen at www.dianathorneycroft.com .
Diana Thorneycroft
