Comiter emigrated from the U.S. and taught at NSCAD University in Halifax. His detailed photographs of buildings in Nova Scotia were originally framed as part of conceptual photography’s interest in typology. The series was the subject of a solo exhibition at MSVU Art Gallery in Halifax in 1989. Over time, the work has been discussed more in terms of architectural record and preservation, including in Landmarks: Historic Buildings of Nova Scotia (1994).

Image: Alvin Comiter, Old Town Clock, Citadel Hill, Halifax, 1988, gelatin silver print, 35.3 x 27.9 cm; image: 30.6 x 24.2 cm, CMCP Collection, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa.

For further reading, see:

Comiter, Alvin. Alvin Comiter: Photographs. Halifax: Dalhousie Art Gallery, 1984.

Pacey, Elizabeth, and Alvin Comiter. Landmarks: Historic Buildings of Nova Scotia. Halifax: Nimbus, 1994.