Local photogs pay homage to county churches

There are 44 Greek Orthodox and Ukrainian Catholic churches in Lamont County, and both Christophe Potworowski and Christian George have visited them all. There used to be 47 but the ravages of time and progress have decreased the numbers. Those numbers will only decline from here.

These pious men made their visits prompted by a desire to compile a complete documentation of the ones still standing. They also were compelled by the quaint beauty of these religious structures coupled with a strong interest in putting them in a historical and cultural context.

“My sense is that this [collection of photos] represents a life that goes on,” Potworowski explained. The way he sees it, these churches were important centres for the Ukrainian settlers who put up homesteads in and around Mundare, Bruderheim and Lamont.

The area located east-northeast of Edmonton is known as having the most churches per capita in all of Canada. Potworowski admits that much of this boast is due to the relatively low number of residents in the county. There are only 3,872 people in the entire 2,385 square kilometres, putting the population density at about 1.6 people per sq. km.

Those few people are often very private people as well and Potworowski is thankful for their kindness in opening the church doors to let him and George in.

Many of those people are descendants from the very first settlers. This is Ed Stelmach territory with many churches bearing the distinctly Russian onion-style dome. Because of the trouble that many settlers had with integration into North America versus retaining traditional values of their native countries, some churches were built right across the street from each other, each having their own distinct audience.

The collection of photos (presented by the Photographic Salon Exhibitors Association of Alberta Canada) that these two men put together is a labour of love started by a simple glance at a brochure that Lamont County published about five or six years ago. What they wanted to achieve was a definitive photo essay without much of any kind of editorial commentary.

“It isn’t strictly a documentary but it does have a strong documentary tone,” he continued.

The works are very good, some showing church spires bathed in sunlight, an obvious halo with a great vantage point. Others look like they’re from another era, making the viewer wonder how much or how little things have really changed for the people who tend the land there.

Potworowski calls them “environmental photos rather than portraits” meaning that it was important to show them as existing parts of the landscape. That’s why you’ll see one decades-old church standing regally and placidly behind an AMA sign that designates it a tourist attraction. This is the rural Alberta version of The Bridges of Madison County.

Potworowski said that he wants people to see these buildings as “interesting and alive.”

These two men are dedicated amateur photographers with some obvious skills that will certainly be noticed by those with a similar view of honouring the settlers and their religious institutions. During the first weekend of June, a Lamont County event called Open Doors is held for the public to visit these churches. A brochure with all of the locations is available at the tourist bureau.