“i am”: Portraits of Strangers EXHIBITION – 2026 Contact Festival

A Mirror to the City

In a city as bustling and often anonymous as Toronto, we spend our days brushing past thousands of faces, rarely stopping to truly see the person behind the expression. Photographer Carmine Groe has spent the better part of two decades doing exactly that: stopping, observing, and capturing the people who make up the fabric of our streets. His latest exhibition, *i am*, arriving this May as part of the prestigious Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, is not merely a collection of photos; it is a meditative study of the human condition in Toronto from 2007 to 2022.

What makes *i am* stand out in a festival crowded with technical brilliance is its intentionality. The exhibition is curated as a journey. You don’t just walk in and look at pictures; you are invited into a ritual. It begins with a mirror and a single colour portrait—a threshold that forces you to confront your own reflection before you are ushered into a stark, monochromatic world. By stripping away the colour, Groe forces the viewer to focus on the "raw architecture" of the face, turning fleeting street encounters into timeless, almost sculptural studies of character.

The Space Between

Groe’s philosophy, summarized by his mantra—"Not as the eye sees it, but as the heart feels it"—is a refreshing departure from the clinical, documentary style often associated with street photography. He isn’t interested in the "absolute truth" of a subject, which he rightly notes is impossible to capture in a single frame. Instead, he is chasing the "trust" that forms in the minutes between a stranger saying yes and the shutter clicking.

Having followed his work for years, including his recent project *Reverie*, it’s clear that Groe is obsessed with the ephemeral. These twenty-eight black-and-white portraits are snapshots of trust, capturing the vulnerability that exists when a stranger allows themselves to be seen by another. It is a profound exploration of the space between the photographer and the subject, asking us to consider what we project onto others when we look at them, and what they might be hiding in plain sight.

The Venue: Daniels Waterfront

Hosting this exhibition at the Daniels Waterfront, North Gallery at George Brown College’s School of Design is a stroke of curatorial genius. The Waterfront campus is a hub of creative energy, and its location at the foot of Lower Jarvis places the exhibition right on the edge of the lake, where the city meets the vast, open horizon. It’s a fitting backdrop for a show about connection and perspective.

Before or after you visit, take a walk along the water. The area has transformed significantly over the last decade, and it’s a great spot to grab a coffee and process the exhibition. If you’re looking for a bite, you’re a short walk from the St. Lawrence Market, one of the city’s most iconic culinary landmarks. Grab a peameal bacon sandwich from Carousel Bakery or some fresh oysters from Buster’s Sea Cove to ground yourself back in the tangible, delicious reality of Toronto after the meditative experience of the gallery.

Good to Know

* **Dates:** The exhibition runs from May 4 to May 15, 2026. Make sure to mark your calendar for the opening reception on May 4th, which runs from 3:00 PM to 7:00 PM—it’s the best time to hear the artist speak about his process. * **Location:** Daniels Waterfront, North Gallery, George Brown Polytechnic, 3 Lower Jarvis St., 2nd Floor. * **Getting There:** The venue is highly accessible by transit. Take the 75 Sherbourne bus or the 6 Bay bus, or walk south from Union Station. If you’re driving, there are several paid parking lots in the vicinity, though the area gets busy on weekends. * **The Vibe:** This is a quiet, contemplative space. It’s not a "selfie" exhibition; it’s a place to sit with the work, observe the details, and perhaps leave with a few more questions about your fellow Torontonians than you had when you walked in.