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Darren Ell Photography

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21 images Created 29 Jul 2022

The Age of Innocence

In the last two decades, I have published and exhibited photographs about the impact of poverty and military occupation, the struggles of immigrants, refugees and political prisoners as well as the turmoil of social unrest. Doing this work as a white Canadian middle class man made me acutely aware of the differences between my life and the lives of those I photograph. While all human beings struggle and suffer privately regardless of class, what the camera sees in a refugee camp or a deeply impoverished neighborhood is different from what it sees in public middle class life. In order to create images of the latter, I began photographing public trade shows in Quebec where members of my social class avail themselves of the latest products and services coming onto the market. I then continued the work by looking at tourism during my vacations.

The Age of Innocence is a work of social documentary and a satire of the middle class. It uses tourism, leisure and consumerism as subject matter to explore questions of class, culture, race, inequality, gender stereotypes, distraction, and taste. It borrows from the language of vernacular photography with its focus on the banal and commonplace as well as from the language of commercial photography via the use of flash and saturated colors. The photographs were made between 2014 and 2023 in nine countries: Canada, Croatia, Cuba, Iceland, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, and the United States.
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  • Cartier Street, Quebec City 2015
    1-Cartier Street, Quebec City 2015.jpg
  • Hunting and Fishing Trade Show, Montreal 2014
    2-Hunting and Fishing Trade Show, Mo...jpg
  • Sandwich, Massachussetts 2018
    3-Sandwich, Massachussetts 2018.jpg
  • Playa Calahonda, Nerja, Spain 2019
    4-Playa Calahonda, Nerja, Spain 2019.jpg
  • De Toute Beauté Trade Show, Montreal 2014
    5-Salon de toute beauté, Montréal 20...jpg
  • Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croatia 2016
    6-Plitvice Lakes National Park, Croa...jpg
  • Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakesh, Morocco 2017
    7-Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakesh, Morocco ...jpg
  • National Pet Show, Montréal 2014
    8-Salon national des animaux de comp...jpg
  • Diocletians's Palace, Split, Croatia 2016
    9-Diocletian's Palace, Split, Croati...jpg
  • Domaine Carneros, Napa Valley, California-2022
    10-Domaine Carneros, Napa Valley, Ca...jpg
  • De Toute Beauté Trade Show, Montreal 2014
    11-De Toute Beauté Trade Show, Montr...jpg
  • Head of the Meadows Beach, Truro, Cap Cod, Massachussetts 2018
    12-Head of the Meadow Beach, Truro, ...jpg
  • Essaouira Beach, Morocco 2017
    13-Essaourira Beach, Morocco 2017_36.jpg
  • Carmel-by-the-Sea, California-2022
    14-Carmel-by-the-Sea, California-202...jpg
  • Cayo Coco, Cuba 2023
    15-Cayo Coco, Cuba 2023.JPG
  • Rovinj, Croatia 2016
    16-Rovinj, Croatia 2016.jpg
  • 17-Carmel Cathedral, Porto, Portugal...jpg
  • Living Alone Trade Show, Montreal 2014
    18-Living Alone Trade Show, Montreal...jpg
  • Air BnB, San Francisco, USA 2022
    19-Air BnB, San Francisco, USA 2022.jpg
  • Bally's Hotel, Las Vegas
    20-Bally's Las Vegas 2018.jpg
  • Settlers Green Outlet Village, Conway, Massachussetts 2018
    21-Settlers Green Outlet Village, Co...jpg