One of our first dates Glenn told me that he had to show me something and we went to York Cemetery to see Tim Horton’s grave. That is why there is snow in my photograph of his headstone — because we went in December. I am inspired by the art of headstones, which is why I like to photograph them in black and white.
Having grown up drawing, I find the art on the tombstones fascinating. I like to learn about what the symbols mean. I also like the closure that cemeteries give. I like the peace and the tranquility in them. I love history; I am a huge history buff and you learn more about towns, people, epidemics. If you want to learn about the history of the town, go to the cemetery.
I am interested in researching headstone iconagrpahy. There are a lot of religious symbols but there are also many other symbols that you can look for such as the Masons, Legions, military.
One of my favourite cemeteries is the Fort York Cemetery.
I am fascinated with the zinc/aluminum headstones. I don’t understand why they didn’t come into more popular use; they last much longer. I find it a shame that so much has been lost on the marble and other stone markers.
One of my main interests is old cemeteries and the old stones. I like to do rubbings on stones that are hard to read. You know that there is something written there. In doing the rubbings and through photogaphy we can do some part towards giving back to the deceased their name and identity.