The gallery is pleased to present "Cold City," our second solo exhibition of work by Canadian photographer Carl Zimmerman.

For over two decades, Zimmerman’s installation and photographic practice has explored the idea of constructed environments, in particular, the utopian role played by Neo-classical architecture.

He begins this process by constructing architectural models that are photographed and then digitally edited. The resulting images have been displayed in both traditional gallery and installation settings, often modified to suggest a bunker type space.

Zimmerman’s first photographic series, “Lost Hamilton Landmarks,” developed out of his interest in ambitious and authoritarian-styled national building programs in the period leading up to WWII. This was followed by “Landmarks of Industrial Britain” which reflected on the 19th century Roman and Greek prototypes popular during the Industrial Revolution.

In "Cold City" Zimmerman continues to investigate the underlying utopian and monumentalist themes of the previous two series. Influenced by images of Soviet industrial complexes associated with the Cold War, "Cold City" is developed around the idea of these large "closed cities", many of which are situated in extremely remote or arctic locations.

Carl Zimmerman (b. Hamilton, ON, 1951) was influenced at a young age by oversized public and industrial buildings in his hometown. He has been exhibiting his work throughout Canada and Europe for the past 25 years and can be found in permanent collections of: Irish Museum of Modern Art, Dublin; Museum London, London, Ontario; Canada Council Art Bank; Art Gallery of Hamilton, Hamilton, Ontario; Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Confederation Centre Art Gallery, Charlottetown, PEI; St. Mary's University Art Gallery, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Owens Art Gallery, Sackville, New Brunswick; Nova Scotia Art Bank.