VICTORIA, BC.- How much of who you are is shaped by where you live? This is the question that inspired two curators at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria to create the beautiful and thought-provoking photography exhibition, In Another Place, And Here, opening at the AGGV on Jan. 24.

The exhibition is inspired by the novel In Another Place, Not Here, written in 1986 by Canadian author Dionne Brand; both works investigate the relationships between self and place.

The AGGV curators, Michelle Jacques and Toby Lawrence, are bringing together the work of eight local, national, and international artists to examine the theme. Each artist’s photography offers a unique way of looking at the human relationship to the environment. Yet out of this diversity emerges a focused conversation that encourages the viewer to think about Vancouver Island’s coastal location and the complexities that underlie our relationships to this place.

“Whether using an approach that is elusive, fantastical, mundane, or analytical, the artists in this exhibition make photographs that describe the land and the self in ways that ask us to understand that the places we live are defined by a multitude of narratives and histories,” says AGGV chief curator, Michelle Jacques. “They encourage us to see our surroundings from fresh perspectives, and to imagine completely new worlds.”

Toby Lawrence adds, “The complex histories and activities that uphold the strong connections to land and sea present in the lives and collective consciousness of Vancouver Islanders resonate within the global conversation, and are foundational to the selection of photographs in this exhibition.”

In Another Place, And Here, and runs until May 31. Artists include Nadia Huggins (St. Vincent & the Grenadines), O’Neil Lawrence (Jamaica), Mike Andrew McLean (Canada), Meryl McMaster (Canada), Troy Moth (Canada), Dawit L. Petros (Eritrea/Canada/US), Krista Belle Stewart (Canada), and Li Xinmo (China).