Matt Williams

Matt Williams was born in Winnipeg, Treaty One Territory on a spring day in the late ’80s. He grew up on the edge of town beside the Assiniboine River, a stone’s throw from the race track. He is working to uncover and explore axis points in bodies, in geographies, in feeling. His devotion lies in creating and connecting these worlds, from the massive to the minuscule. His photographs have been published in National Geographic, The Globe & Mail, VICE, No Depression, NOW Magazine, Exclaim!, and other fine publications.

Two Rivers

Two Rivers is both a ghost and a road story—one that traverses decades and dimensions as much as it does waterways and highways, both real and imagined. The book project began in the spirit of documentary during the summer of 2018, as I set out to recreate my own dreams and memories as cinematically as they are rendered in my mind. It quickly transformed into something else altogether—an investigation into the nature of time, consciousness, and identity, and an exploration of the enduring significance and soul of geographies. The visual narrative flits between worlds, shot through with bliss, horror, longing, liberation, and intergenerational ecstasy and trauma, populated by phantoms.

The title of the project refers to two things. On one hand, it’s a reference to the two muddy waterways—the Red and Assiniboine Rivers—that connect to create the most important historical meeting place in my hometown of Winnipeg. On the other, it alludes to the way that making these photographs ended up shaping my perception of dream and memory as two intersecting rivers, eternally swirling and bleeding into one another.

To view more of Matt Williams’s work please visit their website.