Reave Dennison: Under 60 Tons
“The book revives a world in which things are repeatedly declared obsolete and then discovered to contain another kind of usefulness. In Dennison’s photographs, the past does not disappear. It remains on the shoreline, at the bottom of the ocean, waiting for someone to find a reason to retrieve it.”
Andrew Witt’s review for C4 Journal– read the review here.
Under 60 Tons documents the lived practices and working conditions of maritime labour along the Pacific Northwest coast. Between 2016–2024, Reave Dennison took black-and-white analogue photographs while employed as a crew member aboard small, versatile tug boats, which are classified as ‘under 60 gross tons’. These boats are being retired by companies in favour of larger, more stream lined vessels to comply with the tightening of Transport Canada regulations.
The book features over 90 photographs that he took of crew members who navigate marine machinery, infrastructure and the elements, including hands on chart work, compass work and manual labour. Many of these skills and duties are being rendered obsolete by technology. The photographs are accompanied by handwritten, journal entries that express the vernacular language of the crew and Dennison’s reflections.
Co-published by Pale Fire and Information Office
Edited by Reave Dennison, Amy Kazymerchyk
Designed by Reave Dennison with Derek Barnett
Printed by Balto in Lithuania
Language: English
Format: Hardcover
Date: Spring 2026
Size: 28 x 21.5cm
Pages: 160
Colour: Black & White Duotone
Edition: 500
ISBN 978-1988860275
Under 60 tons is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, John & Helen O’Brian, Jane Irwin & Ross Hill, and Claudia Beck.
![]()
![]()
The book features over 90 photographs that he took of crew members who navigate marine machinery, infrastructure and the elements, including hands on chart work, compass work and manual labour. Many of these skills and duties are being rendered obsolete by technology. The photographs are accompanied by handwritten, journal entries that express the vernacular language of the crew and Dennison’s reflections.
Co-published by Pale Fire and Information Office
Edited by Reave Dennison, Amy Kazymerchyk
Designed by Reave Dennison with Derek Barnett
Printed by Balto in Lithuania
Language: English
Format: Hardcover
Date: Spring 2026
Size: 28 x 21.5cm
Pages: 160
Colour: Black & White Duotone
Edition: 500
ISBN 978-1988860275
Under 60 tons is generously supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, John & Helen O’Brian, Jane Irwin & Ross Hill, and Claudia Beck.
