'Full Circle' photo exhibit in Fort Smith offers glimpse into the lives of residents 50 years ago

A series of black and white images capturing the people of Fort Smith, N.W.T. — and a snippet of life in the town in the 1970s  — has recently been unearthed, so to speak.

Though colourless, the portraits come in as many tones as they do in facial expressions of the people they depict.

In one, a short fringe frames the face of a young girl, who sits on a chair and beams at the photo taker.

In another, a man stares with an expression of contemplation, as though taking in the photographer, a newcomer to the town, with a matching curiosity. From the photo's angle, the man's gaze would seem to aim not strictly at you, but just over your shoulder.

Still more photos show hints of the town's style and culture at the time — clothing articles include a chain-adorned wide brim hat, a Barrymore collar shirt (the kind with long points), and perhaps more timelessly, a plaid shirt and a turtleneck sweater.

The photographer behind the portraits is Luis Ayala, who accepted a job as a social worker in 1970 and moved to Fort Smith from southern California. 

During the three years he lived in the N.W.T., he snapped hundreds of photographs on his 35-millimetre Pentax camera, mainly portraits of people who lived in and around the community. 

Ayala developed and printed the photos in a darkroom he set up in his bathroom.

Now, more than fifty years later, Ayala, with the help of his friend, decided to send the photos back to the North, where they're being showcased at the Northern Life Museum and Cultural Centre in Fort Smith in an exhibit called "Full Circle."

"It's … a culmination of a dream that I've had for decades, to have an exhibit, to showcase these individuals. And it couldn't have come better than to have that exhibit in Fort Smith, where it all began," he said.

"It's been a privilege and an honour to have those photographs on display."

'Struck by the community'

The interest behind the project in the first place, he said, was of the community and the people. Ayala said he would ask permission, and arrange to get copies to people later.

"I was sort of struck by the community that I was serving. I have … Mexican ancestry. I grew up in Southern California and in the city," he said. "Coming to the northern community of Fort Smith, I felt as if I were an anthropologist, and I was sort of documenting the community as I saw it through my viewfinder."

Eventually during his time there, word of his project got out.

"It got to the point where the word was out in the community that I was asking to take photographs of people. And some of them who hadn't been asked that [would say], 'Hey, how come you haven't taken my photograph?'" Ayala recalled.

It was just a few years ago when a friend of his took copies of those photos from Fort Smith and sent a sample to the community's museum.

The museum's curator, Cassandra Coleman, said there are about 200 photos in Ayala's collection, most of which are portraits. 

"They're absolutely beautiful photographs for, you know, being from the 70s, they are so crisp and clear. You can see people's faces, and you can see their eyes," Coleman said.

"It's sort of a bit of a treasure because cameras weren't very common in the North at the time, right. So there's not a whole lot of photographs — especially of the people from that time." 

She said many of the people who were photographed are now elders in the community and some are no longer alive. Coleman said it makes the photos that much more special for relatives to see those photos.

While many of the people in the images have been identified, Coleman said the museum staff are still actively seeking out people to help identify the rest or to corroborate or correct any previously identified or misidentified photos.

The launch of the photo exhibit drew in at least 20 people, she said. The museum framed the staff's favourite photos for the exhibit. It is also showing slideshows of the photos, with the pictures each numbered, so those coming in to see it can help identify the subjects if they recognize them.

"We've got a little clipboard out and a pen and people can sit and watch the slide show ... and write down the number," she said.

There's also interest from the local elders home to have the slideshows shown there, she added.

The museum is also working on a new collections management system, Coleman said, that will enable the museum to make its collections available publicly online.

As for Ayala, he said he hopes he can come see the exhibit in person at some point, and perhaps even meet some of the relatives of the people he photographed.