Naomi Harris

Naomi Harris (born May 26, 1973) is a Canadian photographer living in Toronto. She is known for her portraits of people from sub-cultures such as retirement communities and nudist beaches.

Biography Harris was born in Toronto and obtained a Bachelor in Fine Arts (BFA) from York University. After completing her degree, she moved to New York City where she received her photographic training at the International Center of Photography. Professionally, several of her personal projects were shot while on road trips, resulting in solo exhibitions and accompanying books. Her work has also been published in the New York Times Magazine as well as the London Sunday Times Magazine, The Telegraph Magazine, Marie Claire UK,, Vice, and Newsweek. Additionally, Harris taught classes at her alma mater, the International Center of Photography.

Haddon Hall Hotel Harris moved to Miami Beach in December 1999 to begin her first personal project documenting the last hotel in South Beach that catered to senior citizens. She lived there for two months getting to know the residents and becoming a kind of "surrogate granddaughter". The project, called "Haddon Hall Hotel", received the 2001 "International Prize for Young Photojournalism" from Agfa and Das Bildforum in Germany. The photographs underlined how pensioners experienced their lives "in the midst of waiting and boredom, remembering with nostalgia the years they lived." Reproducing the vibrant hues of Miami, the series was described as being offbeat and kitsch in terms of its style.

Oh Canada! In May 2010, Harris received a grant from the Canada Council for the Arts, allowing her to undertake a road trip across Canada. She traveled along the Trans-Canada Highway, photographing ordinary Canadians and oddities like a giant coffee pot. She commented that "How we choose to photograph people [has] repercussions. We also have a responsibility to our subjects to share their stories and likeness in a way they would want to be portrayed". The photos were shown in an exhibit at North York Centre in Toronto and covered in Canadian news media such as Maclean's magazine.

EUSA Regarding issues of cultural appropriation and globalization, Harris's EUSA exhibition took place at the Circuit Gallery in Toronto from August 27-September 19, 2015. The photographs depicted European themed places in America and American themed places in Europe, making it difficult to distinguish between the two continents. Harris photographed a rockabilly festival in Hungary and Viking themed "Danish Days" in California, among other events. Stating that each thematic setting had inaccuracies, Harris added that "it becomes a sentimental and idealized depiction—an homage to a heritage that isn't one's own."

Other projects In 2018, Harris undertook another type of journey, this time across Ontario, Canada. Wearing period clothing, she recreated the 19th-century canoe trips taken by painter Frances Anne Hopkins and her travelling companions, local fur traders. Harris helped with the paddling and portage, carrying the canoe on her shoulders across dry land when needed. The art project was funded by a grant from Canada Council for the Arts New Chapter.

Publications with contributions by Harris The New Erotic Photography. Edited by Dian Hanson and Eric Kroll. Taschen, 2007. . Image Makers, Image Takers. By Anne-Celine Jaeger. London: Thames & Hudson, 2007. .

Awards 2001 - Honorable Mention for Yann Geffroy Award presented by Grazia Neri Agency, Italy 2001 - Finalist for the W. Eugene Smith Grant 2001 - Winner of the International Prize for Young Photojournalism presented by Agfa and Das Bildforum, Germany 2002 - One of the "30 Emerging Photographers To Watch" as selected by Photo District News 2004 - Represented Canada at the World Press Joop Swart Masterclass in Amsterdam 2010 - Recipient of a Canada Council for the Arts Project Grant