Ivan Rupeš

The mountain people of the northern Philippines pride themselves on being tough, self-reliant, and fiercely independent. The Spanish, during their 300-year reign over the islands, never established a foothold here. As a result, much of the ancient culture and customs are still alive here. That has earned the locals recognition by the Philippine government as indigenous people. But now, their culture is facing a double threat: it could either be turned into a theme park for tourists or fade under the homogenizing tug of digital technology. Or both. Here are a couple of images taken five years apart. They could be simply viewed as such. Or they might be taken as snapshots of personal stories of the people in them, or of one family home, or the whole valley. Or, should one prefer, they may loosely hint at any number of questions about social complexities of cultural change.

Ivan Rupeš is a Toronto-based photographer. In his work Rupeš examines complexities of the human relationship with the environment. He is especially drawn to probing the nuances of the ways humans affect their habitat and the ways it affects them back. Rupeš was born in what is now the Czechia. He started out as a biomedical researcher whose career brought him first to the US and then to Canada. Currently, he takes on documentary projects both in Canada and around the world. His work among the indigenous peoples of the northern Philippines was presented at the 2021/2022 Earth Photo Exhibition in the UK. Over the past several years, Rupeš has been extensively involved in organizing and digitizing an archive of Czech 20th century avant-garde photographer Jaromír Funke.

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Contact:  info@ivanrupes.com  
Website:  http://ivanrupes.com
IG: @ivanrupes

May 6th to May 17th, 2026
918 Bathurst Street, Toronto
Sun and Star Rooms

Hours: Wednesday - Sunday, 12pm to 5pm
Opening reception: Thursday May 7th from 6-9pm
Artist talk: aturday, May 9th from 1-3pm