The Utopian Farm

The Utopian Farm

Photographing farms in the first half of the 20th century is an opportunity to look at the visible traces of the past in the present and, therefore, to understand how, even in the present, the passage of time influences the way we see, because each image is a source of evocation and produces memories.

These farms, contaminated by public health standards, are deteriorating in surreal shifting sands of the environment. Proximitymoves away from them as the world smashed its doors. Quebec, a fine palate, feeds on new trends and imports its food. Cheaper, saltier and sweeter ! They throw the towel in front of the production rights or joint marketing plans : big capital and administrative diplomas for profit are required. They are fighting against the shortage of manpower, the handover to the next generation, which is not always welcoming, and insufficient cash flow. Some experience the exoticism of the insector the yak. At the very time that regional agriculture has been in decline for several decades, it has been replaced by the "American" agro-industry, which favours the insignificant proliferation of suburbs in vast agricultural areas around Montreal and Quebec City.

This story of Catholic missions, as a fortifying agent of agriculture, and of poverty has fallen by the wayside. An evanescent generation, who worked hard to enjoy the years at the end of life, no longer believe in it. A growing cohort of young farmers, entrepreneurs or peasants believe in it. However, since history is not what makes our biceps swell, we do not differentiate between the promises kept and the uncertainty of the void.