The light of PJ Leroux
Dear friends,
I’m thrilled to share a new release of fine art photographs that feel especially meaningful — a limited-edition series by the exceptional photo-based artist PJ Leroux, a member of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation in Golden Lake, Ontario.
PJ Leroux, Daughter’s Footsteps, 2022
I met PJ five years ago while consulting on an extraordinary project in Ottawa for a company called Zibi. It was extraordinary not because of the aesthetics of the building (it’s gorgeous), but because of their values. I’d honestly never seen anything like it in my years as an art consultant. Their mandate — to work with the local Indigenous populations — was woven throughout every level of their work and went far beyond just the selection of art.
As part of my work with Zibi, I was invited to join an Indigenous cultural learning workshop guided by Algonquin-Anishinaabe community members. The artists I recommended for the project were then reviewed by women from the Memengweshii Council, and it was one of these women who first shared PJ’s work with me.
PJ Leroux, Sparrow, 2022
PJ Leroux, Bruce Banner, 2022
The series we’re releasing today, however, is different from what I first saw. PJ is an accomplished photographer — he shoots a stunning landscape and slows down to see the world in a way that helps us see life through his lens. But when he showed me this new body of work, I was taken aback. It was something he had been pursuing quietly alongside a journey that’s taken him through multiple paths — from truck driver, to field technician, to communications specialist to, most recently, elected Councillor in his community. The energy in these photographs was completely different: celebratory, powerful, and a far deeper expression of who PJ is and what he stands for.
This is a moment that has been a long time in the making. PJ and I have stayed connected over the years — I’ve used his work in several of my art consulting projects, and my son and I visited his family recently as they were preparing to move into their new home, just a week before his community’s annual pow wow. PJ walked me through these photographs, and all I can say is that there was a knowing in the work. “Greatness,” in the way my hero Rick Rubin describes it — as a devotional act, a gift to the Universe, rather than simply a path to achievement.
PJ Leroux, Me N Meiyah, 2022
PJ’s warmth, sincerity, and humanity come alive in this work. I could never have predicted how powerfully his practice would evolve — into this luminous, community-centred expression. His process begins with something simple: an invitation to friends — often performers, dancers, and musicians — to come together and play. They arrive wearing traditional regalia, each piece handmade by people in the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation where he lives. PJ, by the way, shares all profits from the sale of his photographs with his collaborators.
These images are created entirely in-camera using long exposure, custom-built lighting, and the natural landscapes of Golden Lake. The result is a striking fusion of performance, portraiture, light, and ceremony. These aren’t staged moments — they’re lived expressions of identity, kinship, and trust. As PJ describes it:
“Luck, patience, persistence — and friends who believe in their friends. My belief in their power, and their faith in mine.”
This release marks a new chapter in PJ’s artistic practice: an opening, a declaration, an invitation. I’m deeply honoured to share these limited-edition prints with you. Details on editions, sizing, and availability can be found below.
Thank you for taking the time to experience this work.
Emily