Moncton photographer captures miniature people in pandemic project

NB artist uses her lens to capture miniature world A New Brunswick artist takes tiny figurines, matches them to the mundane, and creates something larger than life.

MONCTON, N.B. — When the world first went into lockdown thanks to COVID-19 , Moncton photographer Jacinthe Leblanc turned to her camera to help pass the time.

"Everything around us was so negative and so scary because nobody knew if you were going to get sick, if you were going to die, that was a real possibility for a lot of people. So, it kind of gave me something to focus on that wasn't negative, it was positive," Leblanc told CTV News from her home in the city's north end.

However, the photos she takes aren't of your average models. Leblanc has created her own little world at the end of her lens, untouched by the virus.

She spends her spare time positioning miniature statues of people, many less than a few centimetres tall, in creative situations.

"Most people who see the images have no clue they're that small," says Leblanc.

When people were forced to stay in their homes during the lockdown, Leblanc decided to take part in a two-week photography challenge put on by her online camera club on Facebook. The challenge was such a success among group members, they decided to aim for another two weeks of photos.

Leblanc says her miniature people posts garnered quite a bit of attention online, so she continued creating.

On Tuesday, Leblanc will have created and posted 500 different images of her miniature people.

"When I started I didn't know how many I was going to do, it was just for fun more than anything, but it just went on and on and on," says Leblanc.

Leblanc has self-published a book titled The Quarantine Project, which features more than 100 of her petit people creations. She says she's sold more than 150 copies to friends, family, and fans of her art.

Her spouse, Lisa Phillips, says she's in awe of her partner's creativity.

"It's nice to be part of it and sometimes it's nice seeing what she's creating. So, sometimes it's like 'wow I didn't see a roll of toilet paper being a mountain of snow,' right? So it's great."

Leblanc says she finds inspiration for her work in just about every aspect of her life.

"I look at the news, I look at different objects, I go to yard sales and look through people's stuff and go 'oh yeah, I could make a picture out of that' and that's where my ideas come from; pretty much anywhere," says the artist.

Leblanc is unsure whether or not she'll continue posting daily photographs for her Miniature People project, but she says she does plan to continue creating.

"Once I sit at the table and start to create, it's like I'm in my own little bubble … COVID bubble, but I'm in my own little bubble and that bubble is nice because I tune out the world and I truly enjoy what I do."

To view The Quarantine Project and Jacinthe Leblanc's other work, you can visit her website.