Image as Catalyst: The Legacy of Henryk Ross

Henryk Ross, The ruins of synagogue on Wolborska Street, demolished by the Germans, 1940

Image as Catalyst: The Legacy of Henryk Ross

May 28, 2015, 7 - 8:30 pm
Jackman Hall, Art Gallery of Ontario

Using the photographs of Henryk Ross as a starting point, artists, educators, and researchers will consider the role of image making as an act of resistance, the importance of creating and sharing visual records, and how the creative application of technological tools can spread awareness and affect social change. With Dan Bergeron, visual artist; Drew Boyd, Director of Operations for The Sentinel Project; Judy Koke, Chief, Public Programming and Learning at Art Gallery of Ontario and moderated by Leora Schaefer, Toronto Office Director of Facing History and Ourselves. 

About the Speakers

Dan Bergeron is a Toronto-based visual artist whose work takes the form of large-scale portraits adhered to architectural elements, functional sculptures, billboard interventions or mixed-media paintings. Blending Street Art aesthetics and a deep engagement with communities, Dan’s work employs urban visual culture’s immediacy to foster reflection upon issues of personal identity, social relationships and the spaces that we collectively inhabit. 

Drew Boyd is the director of operations for the Sentinel Project, a Toronto-based NGO that uses technology to actively assist communities threatened by mass atrocities. Drew holds a master's degree in history from the University of Waterloo and specializes in the technology of warfare and genocide studies.

Judith Koke was recently appointed the Chief, Public Programming and Learning at the Art Gallery of Ontario, after spending  three years as the Director, Education and Interpretive Programs at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri.  Judy has published broadly in the museum field, and her most recent publications are Interpretive Planning for Museums: Integrating Visitor Perspectives in Decision Making,and a chapter on participatory exhibition development in Multiculturalism in Art Museums Today.

Leora Schaefer is Director, Toronto Office Facing History and Ourselves which includes professional development opportunities for teachers, curricular initiatives, and educational events for the greater community.  Leora works with public and Catholic school boards across Ontario, and facilitates seminars for educators here in Canada as well as workshops on teaching practice and pedagogy.


This program is presented in connection with Memory Unearthed: The Lodz Ghetto Photographs of Henryk Ross.

Presented in collaboration with Facing History and Ourselves

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