Since joining confederation with
Canada in 1949, Newfoundland has experienced huge industrial and economic
progress. At the same time, development of the province’s natural resources
has put increasing pressure on traditional outport culture. To exacerbate
matters, the last decade has witnessed a dying fishery, the lure of economic
prosperity in the west, and the attraction of larger urban centres. As a
result, outport communities are feeling the brunt of vast outmigration.
Much of the distinct heritage that
has characterized Newfoundland for so many years has changed drastically.
However, the uniqueness of outports, nurtured by centuries of isolation,
will always remain. Outport is a snapshot in time between the years
1969–1985, vividly capturing the life of one of these communities. Through
dramatic photographs and personal stories told by the people themselves,
this book takes a look back at a lifestyle that has changed forever.
Candace Cochrane first came to
Newfoundland in 1967 to work in a children’s summer recreation program run
by the Quebec-Labrador Foundation (QLF) on the Northern Peninsula. The
landscape and its people inspired her to develop her photography skills in
order to document her experience of outport life. Since then, she has
divided her time between working as a photojournalist, a teacher of
photography, and a cultural heritage program director for QLF. Her
photographs have appeared in numerous magazines and books in Canada and the
US. Some of the photographs from this book are collected in the National
Archives of Canada.
For part of each year, Cochrane
lives and works out of her house on the Northern Peninsula, where she first
fell in love with the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
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