KARLA MCMANUS is an art historian and visual theorist who specializes in the study of photography and the environmental imaginary. Her scholarly output, in the form of curation, publications, and presentations, focuses on how historic and contemporary concerns, from wildlife conservation, to environmental disasters, to anxiety about the future, are visualized photographically.

Karla’s research informs her teaching of the histories and theories of photography and contemporary art. Since July 2019, she has been Assistant Professor of Visual Arts (Art History) in the Faculty of Media, Art, and Performance at the University of Regina. From August 2017 to 2019, she was Assistant Professor (Limited Term) in Toronto, at Ryerson University’s School of Image Arts, teaching in the Photography Studies, Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management, and Documentary Media Programs.

Karla has presented her research at home and around the world at conferences and public talks that focus on the role of photography in today’s contemporary world. She is a Member of the Gail and Stephen A. Jarislowsky Institute for Studies in Canadian Art at Concordia University as well as an Affliliate Member of the Documentary Research Centre at Ryerson University.

Born and raised in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Karla received a BFA in video art from the University of Manitoba in 2004. Karla then studied at Carleton University, Ottawa, where she completed a M.A. in Art History in 2009. In 2015, she was awarded a PhD from the Department of Art History at Concordia University. From 2015 to 2017, Karla was a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Art History and Art Conservation at Queen’s University.