On Now
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MANSIONS TO MOUNTAINS: IN CONVERSATION WITH CATHARINE ROBB WHYTE
OPENS
SUMMER 2021
MANSIONS TO MOUNTAINS: IN CONVERSATION WITH CATHARINE ROBB WHYTE
OPENS
SUMMER 2021
The Early Years
Beginnings in B.C.
Nicholas Everard Morant (1910 - 1999) was born on a dairy farm near Kamloops, B.C. to parents Francis and Mollie Morant. Nick showed a keen interest in photography from an early age, and spent much of his youth exploring the areas around his home with his camera and tripod in tow.
Nick attended the Victoria University Boys' School until 1928, where he continued to practice photography in his spare time. Many of Nick's photographs from this period feature his schoolmates, friends and the natural scenery of Kamloops and surrounding areas.
Nicholas Morant with camera gear (ca. 1926). Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-1/15).
Nicholas Morant (far left) and classmates from Victoria University Boys' School, ca. 1927. Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-2/13/Insert).
Nicholas Morant's school friends, Victoria, ca. 1926 - ca. 1928. Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-2/9/4).
Two of Nicholas Morant's friends on bike ride, ca. 1925. Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-4/18/2).
Nicholas Morant's friends and Snaffy the dog posing for gag photo, ca. 1925 - ca. 1927. Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-2/17/1).
Click images to zoom:
Article with image of car crash by Nicholas Morant, ca. 1928 (publisher unknown). Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Nicholas Morant fonds (V500/III/A/E/PD-1/13/1).
Text on first image reads, "-Nicholas Morant, 'Kamloops,' B.C.
Street cars can't dodge but auto drivers still seem not to realize this. The driver was killed in the smash-up above depicted and the car was totally demolished".
Leaving for Alberta
During and immediately after his education, Nicholas Morant took on numerous freelance gigs in an effort to kick-start his photography career. Morant would often rush across town to be the first to capture newsworthy stories with his camera.
In 1929, Morant negotiated his way into a job position with the Canadian Pacific Railway acting as their Special Photographer. Shortly thereafter, around 1930, Nick relocated to Banff, where he would later spend much of his adult life.