Carol Payne

Biography

specialist in the study of photography and a curator before coming to Carleton, I teach undergraduate and graduate classes in the history and theory of photography as well as other Art History courses. Among other institutions, I have worked for the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography (an affiliate of the National Gallery of Canada), the J. Paul Getty Museum (California) and the London Regional Art Gallery (now Museums London). I am interested in photography as a “social practice” — that is to say, I do not look at photographs as straightforward and unequivocal historic records but instead I examine how they mediate lived experience. Students in my classes can expect to see a wide range of photographs not only limited to photographic art but also as tools of surveillance, anthropology, commercial promotion and journalism; to discuss theory; and to explore the rich photographic collections in the National Capital Region.

Research Interest

Art History