100 Strangers Project Part 20

Meet Javier (Jimmy) Flower

The Flower family live just up the street from me so it was really convenient to include them in my project. In the middle of winter, with snow still piled up, we just so happened to get a beautiful day in which Javier and his kids were out enjoying the weather. Javier was sitting on a deck chair having a beer while his kids were cycling around on the footpath and flying over ramps. Javier is 45yrs old, Bianca is 6, Mathias is 4 and Mia the dog is 3yrs old. Javier is originally from Chile and works in the Delta Hotel in downtown Montreal, he loves football and his favourite team is Real Madrid.

100 Strangers Project Part 19

Meet Christie Vuong

Today I went to the Mile End area to do my project. I ended up on Rue Gaspé which is a really industrial street. It was here I approached the beautiful Christie (25yrs). She was on her way to meet a friend, as there are a lot of artists with studios in this area. I started taking photos of her and chatting to her as one does during a shoot. When I asked her what she does in Montreal, I immediately felt the pressure. She studied fashion at Concordia and is now a fashion photographer in Montreal. My mouth went dry at the thought of shooting another photographer and I may have swore a few times. Thank you Christie for allowing me the time to use you for my personal project. Check out Christie's work at www.info@christievuong.com

100 Strangers Project Part 18

Meet Virginie Debays

I met Virginie outside the Library on Parc at St Viateur. Virginie Debays is from Montreal and resides in the Mile End. Her parents emigrated from France to Canada in 1968. She has one son who is only 20 months old and she used to teach at the Ministry of Immigration, however she is going back to school to study nursing.

100 Strangers Project Part 17

Meet Darcie Lamson

I approached Darcie at the edge of Parc Jeanne Mance. We were both in a hurry and both had appointments in the next ten mins so we ended up doing a quick shoot together. Darcie is 28yrs old from Alberta. She works in fashion design and studied at the Academy of Design and Technology in Montreal but she said this school was no longer around. She has one younger brother and her parents own a cattle ranch in the Prairies, yes she said as I looked her her like a wild wild west ranch. Thanks so much Darcie for helping a girl out even though you had somewhere you needed to be.

100 Strangers Project Part 15 and 16

Meet Mireilla and Shirley the Le Blanc sisters

I met Mireilla and Shirley on my walk up Mont Royal. It was a brisk morning with plenty of ice just sitting there waiting for its victims. Mireilla 68 years old and Shirley 58 years old both born in Montreal but Mireilla having more English than Shirley took centre stage for this project, she has more English than Shirley from growing up in Outremont and playing with little Jewish girls when she was a kid. Mireilla worked in a bank for 35 years and retired last year. She got really bored of not having a routine anymore and decided she still wanted to meet people everyday. She now works as a brigadiers scolaire or as we call them in Ireland (a lollipop lady). Shirley also worked in a bank for 35 years and just retired this week. She is enjoying her new freedom and late mornings so far and hopes it will last. Mireilla has one daughter who is 31yrs old and Shirley has 2 daughters 28yrs and 30yrs old who both work in offices.

100 Strangers Project Part 14

Meet Uncle Costa

It was a blustery snowy day and I was sick of the cold outside, so for my project I headed into the nearby record store less than a block from my house. My girlfriend is always raving about this place called Thee Sound Central saying they have parties in the record store and they so nice and welcoming and they will even play records of your choice for you in store, you can just hang out there whenever you want..Seriously!! In I went and I met with Uncle Costa. He was more than willing to let me take shots of the store and told me a bit about himself. He is born and bred Montrealer. He was a Montreal punk rock singer for 20 years in a band called Vulgar Deli. He once owned a moving company and was hired by various bands as a driver and was once the driver for Kataklysm (a Canadian death metal band) in the US for 2 1/2 months. Of course he loves music and what better a place to work now than a record store. Thee Sound Central can be located at Mont Royal and Coloniale.