WorkSpace Canada

The photo documentary WorkSpace Canada is Martin Weinhold's most ambitious work of art. The project’s goal is an overall picture of contemporary Canada that shows a multifaceted portrait of a nation at work, covering all of the country's provinces and territories. Since 2006 the photographer keeps constantly adding new areas and more jobs / occupations to complement the collection. In 2020 the mission shall be accomplished. For generations to come this exceptional photographic legacy will offer a general view into Canadian everyday life and into today’s world of work. WorkSpace Canada is a great narrative about the relationship between person and workplace, it takes the viewer on a fascinating journey throughout Canada, from coast to coast, from the southern border to the tundra in Nunavut.

The project is inspired by the work of political theorist Hannah Arendt. In her book The Human Condition she distinguishes between labour, work and action as important elements for the realization of our human capacities. WorkSpace Canada examines the individual choices people make in a world where most of us are bound to gainful employment, and where all of us have to face a limited life time in which we make our dreams come true.

Currently the collection contains nearly 4,000 photographs, featuring Canadians from all provinces and from Nunavut. WorkSpace Canada is a self-initiated and self-financed project, supported by Ryerson University (Toronto), Library and Archives Canada (Ottawa) and the John-F-Kennedy Institute for North American Studies (Berlin).

Selected press publications: The Globe and Mail (2016), CBC Saskatchewan (2017), mare (2018, in German)
Artsfile Magazine (2018), Alberta Views (2020)