Ann Piché is a photo-based artist in Ottawa, Canada.

Working in technology since the early 1990’s, Ann is the first woman electronic technician hired by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), an experience that continues to shape her perspective on the relationship between science and visual art.

A graduate of the School of the Photographic Arts: Ottawa (SPAO), her work has been shown in solo exhibitions in Canada and in group exhibitions internationally. Her collaborations include the Departments of Mathematics at the University of Toronto and York University and the Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences. Her work has been supported by the Jackman Humanities Institute at the University of Toronto, the City of Ottawa and the Ontario Arts Council, and has appeared in publications including SHOTS and PhotoED. 

Working in digital photography, Ann’s images are not software generated; she constructs them in her camera using light, movement and custom-built sets.  Her work explores photographic abstraction and experimental camera techniques. 

Contact: apichephoto@hotmail.com

Ann acknowledges financial support from the City of Ottawa, the Ontario Arts Council, The Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences and the Jackman Humanities Institute, University of Toronto.

Statement

I am drawn to the logic and structure of scientific ideas. Without a human perspective, they can feel distant and incomplete; I use my camera to make that connection. As the first woman electronic technician hired by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), I experienced the divide between science and art. Guided by curiosity about the unfamiliar, that tension continues to shape my work.

I work in digital photography, exploring photographic abstraction and in-camera experimental techniques.  My images are not software generated; they are created physically with light, movement, and hand-built sets in the studio.  By staging and constructing each photograph, I better understand the ideas behind it. Research helps guide this process, allowing abstract scientific concepts to take on a physical form that can be experienced rather than simply explained.

My work is not about illustrating science; it is about the emotions that arise when facing the unfamiliar. Through the use of abstraction and experimental techniques, I acknowledge the anxiety and tension we can feel in these moments.  My images allow viewers to encounter unfamiliar ideas in a direct, intuitive way.