THE 1960s, A Selection of Vintage Prints from The Keystone Press Agency Canada

Our memory of past events and personalities involves the recollections of photographs that define those moments of history. Consequently, we count photographs among our most valued personal possessions. Images have the power to connect people across generations.

The Keystone Press Agency was founded by Bert Garai in the early 1900s in London, England. The Agency’s name was derived from the Keystone Shipping Company, one of the fastest agents for transporting photographs long distance at the time. The Canadian branch of the Agency was established by Bob Moynier, who began his career with Keystone working in the darkrooms in Paris, France, and later as a staff photographer. With an office already in New York City, Moynier approached Keystone’s directors in 1960 who agreed to establish a Canadian branch based in Montréal, then Canada’s largest city. Keystone operated in Montréal for over fifty years before winding down.

Photographic archives such as Keystone provide a rich resource for scholars and those fascinated by history from a variety of disciplines, including photojournalism, art, and fashion. The Keystone Agency played a vital role by distributing images to Canadian newspapers, magazines, and other publications throughout the world. Their archive is vast, comprising over 500,000 original photographs and transparencies. This exhibition concentrates on some of the key personalities and events that defined the 1960s.