Photo|Frome – Tim Smith

Canadian photographer Tim Smith has spent 17 years documenting life on the prairies including 15 years photographing the Hutterites; insular Anabaptists who live communally on colonies in Canada and the United States. In addition to long term documentary work, Tim is a passionate speaker on topics relating to slow journalism, photographing sensitive communities or subjects, mental health in journalism and the heartbreak and joy of being invited into people’s lives.

Tim’s project ‘In The World But Not Of It’ provides the most comprehensive, contemporary and nuanced view of the Hutterite colonies – delving into complex decisions at the heart of the everyday. His documentation offers a glimpse into the continuously negotiated sites of Hutterite life. Many of the images focus on the youth culture in the colonies, where expressions of rebellion, respect for tradition, and maintenance of strict gender roles all create a sense of dual resistance – at once against the pressures of the outside world and against tradition.