Manfred Buchheit: Corners

When two streets converge in St. John’s, it often becomes a gathering place. The corners of this city remain a constant subject for Manfred Buchheit, a prolific photographer known for his work with pinhole and other experimental photographic processes. This exhibition is a selection from a body of work that ranges from 1977 to present day, charting the city’s changing architecture and social landscape — its “corner boys,” its musicians, and the beloved “groc and conf.”

About the artist:

Born in Alsace, France in 1943, Manfred (Mannie) Buchheit is a photographer and educator who lives in Holyrood, NL. Buchheit received his first camera at the age of seven and built his own darkroom when he was 14. In 1950, his family moved to Ontario where he studied at the Ontario College of Art and found work as a medical graphic artist. In 1971, Buchheit moved to Newfoundland, where he worked as a professional photographer and taught art and photography with the Memorial University Extension Service from 1975 until its close.

Buchheit’s photography has toured across the province and the country, and has appeared in various publications, including the Canadian literary journal Geist. His photographs are a part of many private and public collections, including The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery's Permanent Collection, the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography, Fishery Products International, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Newfoundland Teachers Association.

Image: Manfred Buchheit. “The Conversation, Victoria and Gower Streets” (1981). Photograph. Image courtesy of the artist.