Heck’s photos at home at U of M

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This article was published 27/11/2017 (3180 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A new exhibit chronicling iconic moments in the University of Manitoba’s history is helping to complete the portrait of one of its most prolific photographers.

Wolfgang Heck: His Life and Lens (1927-2017) opened on Nov. 23 in the U of M’s Archives and Special Collections on the third floor of the Elizabeth Dafoe Library.

The exhibit contains dozens of Heck’s photos and documents that share the former university employee’s perspective on growing up in Germany under Adolf Hitler, immigrating to Canada, and finding work in the department of zoology as a photographer from 1969 to 1987. 

Heck died on June 20, 2017 at age 90.

Heck’s daughter Angela Heck curated the exhibit with her husband Ivan Hughes as a memorial to her father and a representation of his lifelong passion. The family is also donating Heck’s more than 2,000 photos and negatives to the university’s archives.

“Going through all of his photos we really got a sense that they tell a story of the times and capture some of the iconic images around the university,” Angela said.

Heck was employed as a photographer and technician and worked under researchers Dr. W.O. Pruitt and Dr. George Lubinsky taking photos of various specimens. In his spare time he would often duck out onto campus and take snapshots of the happenings at the university.

Over the years he captured many significant moments in the capacity of an “unofficial” university photographer, including visits from Pierre Elliott Trudeau and student protests.

“He would really try to get the most best, most active interesting shot, almost from a journalistic perspective,” Angela said of her father’s work. “He would always try to position himself to get the most interesting story.”

“I think his photojournalistic impulses really translated into going out and getting glimpses of campus life,” she said.

Shelley Sweeney, head of archives and special collections at the U of M, said Heck’s work not only captured life at the university but also communicated the energy and mood of the moment in a way that others did not.

“A lot of the official photographs are very typical, they were always sort of from the same viewpoints and they’re kind of repetitive in that way,” Sweeney said. “So they don’t give much of a punch, often. It’s nothing against the photographers, they were sort of obliged.”

“These really add to the story of the university in a significant way because they’re the types of photos people will use,” she said.

Heck enjoyed his three decades at the U of M, Angela said, and was well liked by the researchers in his department.

Inge Heck, Wolf’s wife, jokes that the couple had more invitations than they could keep up with while working at the university. She was employed in the university’s print shop at the time.

The 87-year-old said for her the exhibit is a collection of joyful moments.

“It means happy times, good times, we were happy here,” she said. “We made the best friends here that anyone could make.”

The exhibit runs until Feb. 28, 2018.

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