Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Demonstration, Toronto, Ontario, April 1968

These photographs were taken by John Phillips in April of 1968 in Toronto, Ontario, several days after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated by James Earle Ray. They depict a demonstration that originated in a ceremony at St. James Cathedral and proceeded across downtown Toronto streets. Participants carried a symbolic coffin which was finally laid at the door of the United States Consulate on University Avenue. One interesting aspect of this event is that MLK's assassin, James Earle Ray, was at this time hiding out in Toronto, where he remained for approximately one month. Would he have attended this memorial demonstration? Some historians think it would have been consistent with his character and a definite possibility. Although he has not yet been identified in any of these photographs it is interesting to speculate that he might well have been there.

Selma, Alabama & Lowndes County, 1965-66, Stock Photo Gallery

Selma and Lowndes County 1965-66 Signed & Numbered Photographic Portfolio with a foreword by Chuck Fager (archival 13 x 19 inch pigment based prints) Pricing Information

James Meredith Mississippi Freedom March, Mississippi, Summer of 1966, Stock Photo Gallery

On June 5, 1966, James Meredith, the first black student to integrate the University of Mississippi in 1962, embarked on a solo 220-mile "March Against Fear," designed to encourage black voting in Mississippi. On June 6, 1966 in Hernando, Mississippi, Meredith was shot down by white racist Aubrey James Norvell. Martin Luther King, Jr. heard about the shooting while presiding over the regular staff meeting of the SCLC. On June 7, 1966, King visited Memphis, Tennessee with staff members and CORE director Floyd McKissick. While visiting the recuperating Meredith at the Municipal Hospital, the group is joined by Stokely Carmichael, chairman of the SNCC. Floyd, Stokely and King agree that the march will continue and be jointly sponsored by CORE, SNCC, and SCLC, and that a national call will be issued for support and participation. King and a group of marchers begin the second stage of the march, now known as the "Meredith Mississippi Freedom March," starting from the spot on Highway 51 where Meredith had been shot the day before. The number of marchers eventually reaches several hundred. In Granada, Mississippi, on June 14, fourteen marchers persuade 650 African-Americans to vote. On June 17, Stokely Carmichael addresses a huge mass meeting in Greenwood. The "Black Power" slogan gains its first show of public support as Carmichael proclaims: "What we need is black power." In Philadelphia, Mississippi, on June 21, 300 whites attack the marchers with rocks, bottles and clubs. James Meredith rejoins the march on June 24 and participates in the final rally of 15,000 people at the state capitol in Jackson, Mississippi on June 26.

Vietnam War & Civil Rights Protest 1965-66, Stock Photo Gallery

This collection of photographs by John Phillips covers a broad range of Civil Rights Movement and Vietnam War protest subject matter from Alabama, Mississippi, Virginia, New Haven, Chicago and Washington D.C.

(The picture on the left is James Brown performing before civil rights marchers in an open field in Mississippi in 1966.)

Vietnam War & Civil Rights Protest 1965-66 Signed & Numbered Photographic Portfolio (archival 13 x 19 inch pigment based prints) Pricing Information

The Woodstock Music and Art Fair at Max Yasgur's Farm, Bethel, New York, Aug 15-18, 1969

These never before seen photographs of the iconic 1969 Woodstock Music Festival, were taken by Canadian filmmaker, Clay Borris. Fresh from a photography course and with a brand new Nikon F 35mm camera, 19 year old Borris went off on an adventure across the Canadian U.S. border in 1969 to attend the Woodstock Festival... with just two rolls of film, assuming there would be more film available for sale at the festival...there wasn't.... nonethless, he conserved his shots and still managed to capture some important moments in our cultural history.

Strawberry Fields: An International Carnival of Site & Sound, Mosport Park, Ontario, Canada, Aug 7,8,9, 1970

This large selection of mostly never before seen photographs of the1970 Strawberry Fields Festival in Mosport, Ontario, was taken by John F. Phillips. Strawberry Fields was Canada's answer to Woodstock, and competed pretty well on quite a few levels; plus it didn't rain! The poster advertising this event stated: "Visit Free America, 3 days & 500 acres of LOVE, SUN & SOUND for only $15.00". It was VERY hot and when a large water truck arrived, mass showering spontaneously evolved into a tribal like ritual of nakeness and mud-slinging that uniquely exemplifies those long ago days of hippie abandon as well as evoking a scene or two from "Lord of the Flies".

WARNING!! : "Some of this material contains obscene language and sexually explicit imagery that some people may find objectionable and which is definitely not suitable for under-age or sensitive viewers."

Baldwin Street American Exile Community, Toronto, Canada, 1967-74, Stock Photo Gallery

This collection of photographs by John Phillips and Laura Jones is an exhaustive documentation of the evolution of one city block in downtown Toronto over a period of eight years as it served as an immigrant reception area for American Vietnam Wa Resisters seeking asylum from the U.S. Military in the late 60's and early 70's. More than that, however, this is an in depth "60's lifestyle" document covering home births, food coops, street festivals, music, protest and much more, captured all in black and white with both a 4x5 view camera and on 35mm.

Musicians and Personalities from the 1960's & early 70's

This collection of photographs by John Phillips and where indicated, Laura Jones and Noel Thomas, represents some random moments from the 1960's and 70's when our paths crossed with, and our lenses focused briefly on, various musicians and celebrities including: among others, Joan Baez, Howling Wolf, Lenny Bruce, President Harry Truman, Janis Joplin, James Brown, Martin Luther King Jr., Cannon Ball Aderley, Charles Mingus, Duke Ellington and his Orchestra and last but not least, anonymous rhythm & blues players from a black night club ("Juke Joint") in Selma, Alabama.

Cabbagetown & Point Blank Free School

This collection of photographs was taken by John Phillips in the late 60s and early 70s in a downtown section of Toronto known as "Cabbagetown", so named because at one point the largely immigrant residents often grew gardens in their front yards. This area has gone through many phases over the years, but when these photos were taken it was a pretty tough working class neighborhood, just beginning to be discovered by the "white painters" or midddle class folks who began buying up and renovating these often run down but gorgeous Victorian homes, made all the more atteractive because of their proximity to downtown Toronto. This created a great deal of resentment from the local residents. John taught film making and photography there in a "free school" called "Point Blank", which catered to teenaged-school drop outs from the neighborhood. Many of these photographs were taken in the context of that community work. Many of the Cabbagetowners at this time were French Canadian and in spite of their humble means, had cottages outside of Toronto where they attempted to maintain some of their former Eastern Canada rural lifestyle.

The Toronto Jail ("The Old Don Jail") 1978, Stock Photo Gallery

This collection of photographs by John Phillips was taken over a period of several days inside the "Old Don Jail" in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1978, shortly after the jail was decomissioned after over 100 years of service. Included are general scenes and graffiti on the cell walls as well as a view of the gallows where the last execution in Canada took place (image # 00104). WARNING!! : "Some of this material contains obscene language and sexually explicit imagery that some people may find objectionable and which is definitely not suitable for under-age or sensitive viewers."

The Poor People's Campaign of 1968 and Resurrection City, Stock Photo Gallery

This collection of photographs by Laura Jones was taken over a period of two months in Resurrection City in Washington D.C. in the summer of 1968. Laura was literally sleeping on the streets of Washington accompanied only by her Nikon F's and her St. Bernard, "Brandy", along side marchers from across the country, many of whom arrived by mule.

St. Shotts & Trepassey, Newfoundland, 1968

This collection of photographs by John Phillips was made in 1968 in the small and remote outport fishing communities of St. Shotts and Trepassey, at the very south eastern tip of Newfoundland. Nearby is the "graveyard" of the Atlantic, the shoreline littered by shipwrecks. These photographs were taken over the course of two visits in 1968, when the codfish were still running and the hard working fishermen using hand operated nets in their lorries (two man boats) were earning the princely sum of $0.05 per pound for their codfish.

John made the first trip as a participant in the Canadian National Film Board's "Challenge For Change" workshop, headed by Colin Low from the NFB, in cooperation with the Extension Department of Memorial University. This unique workshop involved participants in Colin Low's ground breaking Fogo Island film documentary series which explored documentary film as a means to community development and social change. John returned later that year on his own, living with and photographing the Finlay family of Farm Hill, St. Shotts.

Baldwin Street Gallery of Photography (1969-1979)

The Baldwin Street Gallery of Photography was located in a large detached Victorian house at 23 Baldwin Street in Toronto. It was started by John Phillips and Laura Jones in 1969. For the previous two years, Laura and John were running a drop-in center and multi-media workshop at 23 Baldwin Street for the neighborhood kids, initially financed by the Company of Young Canadians. After putting up a successful and popular exhibit of children's photographs taken with 35mm cameras provided by a grant from the National Film Board, John and Laura decided to expand the photography concept, somewhat modeled after the East Street Gallery of Photography in Grinnell, Iowa (where John went to school and was inspired by Henry Wilhelm, later of "Wilhelm Photographic Research" fame). From that point forward, the Baldwin Street Gallery had monthly exhibits, pretty much continually, for the next ten years. It closed briefly in 1974 when John and Laura were evicted from 23 Baldwin (because the property was sold) but Laura reopened it across the street and continued operations until 1979, when it closed forever.

The gallery largely promoted traditional documentary photography with an emphasis on political statement, social change and women's liberation issues. Canadian photographers were largely featured but there were occasional exhibits of photographers of international stature such as Margaret Bourke White. The gallery also featured a large book store of new and used books relating to photography and at one point boasted one of the world's largest collections of out of print 20th century photography books. The gallery also put out a newsletter which was subscribed to by major photographic institutions all over the world and the gallery sponsored numerous workshops of all kinds relating to photography and social issues.

Brandy, the "Gallery St. Bernard", was so well known as an icon on the street that she appeared on a City of Toronto Tourist map as the symbol for the entire neighorhood. A major activity for John and Laura during the years they operated the gallery, was to thoroughly photograph every aspect of Baldwin Street and the counter culture that thrived there in those heady days, along side the earlier residents, largely Jewish and Chinese. The archive of approximately 50,000 images that resulted from these efforts forms the basis and inspiration for this entire web site emphasizing documenting alternative lifestyle of the 60s and 70s with an emphasis on one unique downtown Toronto city street.

This Baldwin Street Gallery archive will not only emphasize photographs relating to the operation of the gallery, but will eventually feature a full history with posters, articles and various correspondence relating to the operation of the gallery over ten years. This is just the beginning.

Acadian Family Cottage, Near Trenton, Ontario, 1970

This sequence of never before seen 4x5 view camera portraits of the Borris & Maltais families and friends was made by John F. Phillips over the course of a weekend, at Rose and Albert Borris' family cottage, near Trenton Ontario, circa 1970. We are presenting these images as a "web exhibition", without copy right water marking and at a resolution of approximately 800 x 1,000 pixels, approxiimately double our usual web sizing. These twenty-five images are available in their much larger full quality/resolution as individual 13 x 19 inch signed archival prints and also as a limited edition portfolio. For more information please contact us at: videoeve@rogers.com