Tim Smith "The Hutterites" project collection, 2010-2024

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Summary

Creator:
Smith, Tim, 1978- and Archive of Documentary Arts (Duke University)
Abstract:
Tim Smith (born 1978) is an award-winning photographer based in Manitoba, Canada. "The Hutterites" is part of an ongoing project by Tim Smith, entitled "In The World But Not Of It", documenting the Hutterites, Anabaptists who live communally in colonies in Canada and the United States, largely removed from broader society. Materials span 2010-2024 and include 25 color prints sized 18x24 inches featuring various Hutterite colonies particularly the Deerboine Hutterite Colony in Manitoba, Canada; a directory; a Christmas program; a tiechel (headscarf); journal notes written by Smith; postcards and small ephemera related to Smith's exhibitions; and one video file showcasing cattle branding at Forty Mile Hutterite Colony in Montana, United States. Topics include family life; marriages; communal living; farmwork, ranching, and livestock; depictions of women and youth; adoption of new technology; and religious practices. Acquired by the Archive of Documentary Arts.
Extent:
1.75 Linear Feet (1 oversize box)
854 Megabytes (1 file)
Language:
Materials in English.
Collection ID:
RL.13155

Background

Scope and content:

Collection contains selected materials dating 2010-2024 from Tim Smith's ongoing project photographing the Hutterite community. Materials include 25 color prints sized 18x24 inches, depicting life in various Hutterite colonies in Manitoba and Saskatchewan within Canada with a particular focus on the Deerboine Colony in Manitoba; a directory; a Christmas program; a tiechel (headscarf); postcards and related ephemera for Smith's exhibitions; journal notes written by Smith on some early experiences visiting members in Hutterite colonies; and one video file depicting the yearly branding carried out at Forty Mile Hutterite Colony in Montana, United States. Topics include family life; marriages; communal living; farmwork, ranching, and livestock; depictions of women including clothing and labor; depictions of youth at play and in education; adoption of new technology; and religious practices such as church services, funerals, and baptisms.

Biographical / historical:

Tim Smith (born 1978) is an award-winning photographer based in Manitoba, Canada with a background in photography and journalism. His projects and talks have included documenting life in Canadian prairies, the Hutterite community, photographing sensitive communities or subjects, slow journalism, mental health in journalism, and being a part of people's lives. Smith's work has been featured internationally in solo and group exhibitions in countries such as Canada, Cote D'Ivoire, Germany, Italy, Israel, Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, and many more, including a permanent display at the Múzeum habánov v Sobotište (Hutterites Museum in Sobotište) in Slovakia.

"The Hutterites" is part of an ongoing project that began in 2009, entitled "In The World But Not Of It." In 2009, Smith encountered a group of Hutterite women and asked to take a photograph. Over the years, he continued to visit, build relationships, and photograph the various Hutterite communities in Manitoba, Alberta, and Saskatchewan in Canada, and in parts of the United States.

The Hutterites are an insular Anabaptist community practicing adult baptism, communal living ("community of goods"), pacifism, separation of church and state, and self-sufficiency particularly through farming, ranching, and some manufacturing. Largely settled in Canada and parts of the United States since the 1800s in small colonies, the community numbers approximately 45,000.

Tim Smith is a 2024 recipient of an Archive of Documentary Arts Collection Award for the project, "The Hutterites."

Sources: Tim Smith website, https://www.timsmithphotography.ca/, accessed July 22, 2025

"Tim Smith: Among the Hutterites," https://talking-pictures.online/2024/02/17/tim-smith-among-the-hutterites/, accessed July 22, 2025

Hutterian Brethren, "History", https://www.hutterites.org/, accessed July 22, 2025

The Canadian Encyclopedia, "Hutterites in Canada", https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/hutterites, accessed July 22, 2025

Acquisition information:
The Tim Smith "The Hutterites" project collection was received by the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book Manuscript Library from Tim Smith as a winner of the 2024 Archive of Documentary Arts Collection Award.
Processing information:

Processed by Tere Elizalde, July 2025

Accessions described in this collection guide: 2025-0039

Arrangement:

Materials are arranged into two series: Prints; and Papers and Film.

Prints are arranged in order provided by the donor.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Contents

Using These Materials

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Restrictions:

Access note. Some materials are electronic records and need special equipment.

Terms of access:

The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the Rubenstein Library's Citations, Permissions, and Copyright guide.

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Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Tim Smith "The Hutterites" project collection, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

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https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/m1f16x