Activate your Online Access NowNow, 20 years later, Doucet is in good health and has been revisiting the experience through her work, which led to her being named one of three winners of this year’s New Generation Photography Award. The annual prize rewards outstanding work by Canadian artists aged 35 and under working in the photographic arts.
“I was really struck by the idea of fantasy and illness co-existing in these spaces at Disney,” the Winnipeg-born, Toronto-based artist explained during a recent interview in the gallery’s exhibition space. “It led me on this exploration of corporate philanthropy and its intersection with illness, specifically pediatric illnesses, and the ways that the mechanisms of capitalism intersect with childhood illness.
“Things aren’t kept up in the same way. They don’t have the budget,” Doucet says, pointing to the rusting edges and subtle deterioration depicted in her photos. “Something like this wouldn’t fly at Disney because they’re very careful about the way everything is presented.” At the centre of the room is one eye-catching, interactive installation, a whimsical representation of a wishing fountain that accepts wishes from members of the public via their smartphones. A QR code on the wall takes you to Doucet’s website, where you can toss a “gem” into the fountain and submit your own wish anonymously. But instead of your dream coming true, you receive someone else’s wish.
“It’s been really cool for me,” Doucet said. “I don’t get any information about who’s submitting the wishes but I get them. It’s been amazing to see what people want, from really political, world-changing ideas to really personal and specific things.”