Jackie Dives
Photographer
View the overdose crisis through a lens that focuses “beyond people slumped over on the sidewalk” in Of Course This Hurts— a photography series by Jackie Dives.
The series intimately documents the toxic drug supply crisis through the lives of people who are being impacted by this public health emergency.
The exhibition runs March 16–26 at Gallery 881, 881 E. Hastings St. Opening reception is Sunday, March 16 from 2-5 p.m. Artist talk is Saturday, March 22 from 2-3 p.m.According to Dives, “the photographs explore love, grief, bodily autonomy, trauma, and healing as experienced by drug policy activists, frontline workers, people who use drugs and their family members in British Columbia, where overdose is the leading cause of death for people aged 10-59.”
The exhibition includes photographs of people like Jeremy Kalicum, a scientist with a masters of public health who could be facing life in prison for operating a compassion club; Trey Helten, an overdose prevention site worker who has dedicated his life to caring for people in the community; and Traci Letts, whose son recently died from a drug overdose.
“In 2017 my father died from an accidental drug overdose and my art practice shifted dramatically,” said Dives. “His death gave my practice a specific urgency—it became essential to create in order to grieve and to survive that grief.”
As someone with lived experience, it’s important to Dives that her documentation “challenges the cliché and harmful narratives perpetuated by prevalent media tropes that judge and demonize people who use drugs. My photographs complicate historical narratives while exploring the complexities of the human condition.”
Dives said she is interested in “interrogating the role of photography, especially in communities that have been marginalized by photography.”
Her photography makes a strong statement.
“I see this project as a historical record of existence that proves: We were here, this happened, our stories and lives mattered.”
Dives believes the severity of this crisis cannot be overstated; it is only worsening each day.
“We are experiencing the highest number of deaths from drug overdose ever recorded, to the point where overdose death has lowered the average life expectancy of Canadians,” she said. “Regardless of how someone might feel about drug use or drug policy, it’s undeniable that this amount of death is having a significant impact on our communities.
Since the government declared a public health emergency in 2016 over 49,000 people have died from opioid-related deaths in this country. For perspective, the first Canadian death attributed to AIDS occurred in 1983. Approximately 21,000 people have died from AIDS since then.
Of Course This Hurts runs March16–26 at Gallery 881. For more information about the gallery, visit gallery881.com.
Jackie Dives
Photographer
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