Forget People of New York. The really fascinating folks wandering around can be found in Portraits of Montreal.
That’s the title of a new photo series by Mikael Theimer, which aims to document the city’s residents in ordinary situations.
Some photos are based in clichés that can only be found in Montreal, like a man riding a bicycle while eating a poutine. Others are based in harsh realities, like images of the city’s homeless.
“I’m especially interested in the margins of society,” said Theimer. “Whether they be social margins or cultural margins. I’ve also been interested in documenting the reality of people living on the streets.”
In 2014, Theimer started a Portraits of Montreal blog, inspired by the popular Humans of New York site, which documents every day residents of that city. Theimer’s Facebook page now has more than 70,000 followers. He said he’s trying to connect Montrealers to their fellow citizens, something that can be difficult during a hectic life.
“You can travel to India if you go and visit the Sikh community in Park Extension,” he said. “You can travel and live with anarchists if you go on the corner of St. Denis and Sherbrooke and spend some time with squeegee kids.”
While Theimer has already published one book of portraits, he’s currently working on a second, called ‘Montreal Safari.’ The volume will include 1,500 photos taken over the past four years.
“Whenever I look at these people, I look at people living their life and having a moment,” he said. “It’s almost as if I’m stealing a bit of the energy.”
