Shira Gold

Photography has always been the antidote for Shira Gold’s unquiet mind – a visual expression of subjects that often defy verbal articulation and a lens in which she can see the world through new eyes. Her sizeable bodies of work are steeped in personal visual narratives and observations, exploring subjects of grief, identity, change and wonder.

Shira utilizes still life and landscape as metaphors for themes common to us all and often left unspoken. Stillness, negative space and minimalism are consistent characters that have become hallmarks in Shira’s work, providing visual respite and a means to focus on intention and simplicity.

“My art is alert to the discomfort we all face in our daily lives,” she explains, “and I want to turn pain and angst on its side to discover the beauty that accompanies our struggles.”

Shira’s work has garnered her recognition through various international awards, including The Fine Art Photo Awards, Lens Culture Art Photography Awards and International Photo Awards, among others. She has been published internationally in noted publications including The Guardian and The Times newspapers, The British Journal of Photography/1854 , Dodho, PhotoEd Magazine, and more. Shira’s art has been exhibited in public spaces and galleries throughout North America and in Spain, Greece and France. She currently lives and works in Vancouver, Canada. 

 

Project Statement

Life occasionally delivers defining moments that utterly shake you, bringing clarity, context, relief, and grief all in one breath. At age 35, I was diagnosed with ADHD, a moment that prompted a period of reconsidering my past and understanding myself in a new light.

The diagnosis was a reckoning and a release, allowing me to emotionally exhale. It prompted a deep reconciliation with my past and a new understanding of the delicate vulnerability of my busy mind, one that refuses to conform. I had always embraced my differences as character-defining quirks, though life with an untamed mind felt like a daily exercise in hurdle-jumping and emotional self-defence. It was never easy to “turn on” my linear thinking muscles when needed. My mind thought laterally—in reverse, upside down, and leaping from all directions. Academically, I felt confined to a box that didn’t make room for people like me. Trying to succeed in this context was exhausting, draining vibrancy from my view of the world. My ADHD diagnosis changed things. While I mourned the years of misunderstanding, I had a new sense of self-worth and a deeper understanding that my way of seeing and experiencing was beautiful and valuable.

The first of several series exploring my experience with ADHD, Confessions of an Untamed Mind Garden conveys the early stages of self-discovery after my initial diagnosis. Much like the function of memory, each piece layers stitched images gathered from different places, mixing movement and stillness. Atop these assembled gardens are digitally painted marks—gestures reflecting the internal rhythm of my mind. Some pieces were made with clarity and intention, others in restlessness and paralysis, informed by my new experience with medication and the fact that I created my pieces both on my stimulants and during hiatuses. The images are both literal gardens and mind gardens—an entry into my thoughts and a visual celebration of the haphazard yet perfect imperfection of an unrestrained mind.

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