Spectators at a procession
Every year in Toronto's Little Italy there is a Good Friday procession. For almost 50 years, it has drawn throngs of people, mainly along College St., and depicts the Passion of Jesus Christ--the final moments leading to his crucifixion.
When I was reminded about it this year, by a phone call the night before, I knew I had photograph it. But I wanted to do so in a way not reproduced by other photographers, capturing the drama of procession itself and often seen in news images of actors playing various roles, such as Christ being beaten by guards.
To his credit, photographers like Vincenzo Pietropaolo have done this marvellously. It is certainly a challenge, requiring the photographer be close to the actors without interfering with them or blocking the view of the audience. If you do not want to draw unnecessary attention to yourself, this means being graceful through documenting what is seen without, so to speak, being seen yourself.
Personally, however, I feel as a production the procession falls within the category of "staged." As much as I appreciate the hard work and effort it involves, I feel shooting it is largely predictable, following the same sequence of events of years prior. Having this sort of scripted nature makes it feel unreal.
It is for this reason I sought spectators. Though perhaps "mundane", they embody real human essences--from fleeting gestures to expressions--that convey the placid and, occasionally, animated mood of the procession. Even where they were aware of my presence, the spectators did not act for me. Their genuine reactions, whether welcoming or confused, are captured in these photos.
Sometimes I find it difficult to explain that what draws me to a subject is, in a sense, when they do nothing. The pull is in witnessing his or humanity, surfacing only when they are truly at ease. I hope these photos succeed, to the viewer, in conveying this ineffable beauty.
