Eyes to SEA: A Curious World
John Simone's Photographic Voyages

A Feature Artist Presentation:
Nuit Rose Festival 2026: REWILDING

Opening June 18th - until July 5th
Youngplace Art Centre - 180 Shaw St, Toronto

Exhibition Statement

This show is what happened when I left the nightclub
and stepped out into the world.

In the 1980s, I was photographing New York nightlife—celebrities,
club kids, beautiful chaos, and the theatre of people being seen.
Decades later, I set sail, travelling to over 80 countries with a
camera in hand—having never photographed a landscape or even a flower.
I had to learn how to look all over again.

What I found was a curious world:

A vast treasure chest where the sacred and the strange sit side by side:
the intense hues of a single, gem-like bloom; a cornucopia of local goods,
proudly displayed and closely examined; fleeting connections made through
gestures and expressions that transcend language. Images that feel both
familiar and completely unexpected.

Eyes to SEA: A Curious World brings together 300 carefully selected photographs
from an archive of over 90,000—created during a five-year journey across five continents.

This is a show about perception—about catching the world in the act of being itself.
Finding humour, beauty, and meaning where you least expect it.

The installation is curated by Kelly McCray, whose linear arrangement
allows the work to unfold with clarity and intention while
leaving space for discovery.

Welcome to
John Simone Photography

Featuring over 5,000 80's New York Nightlife Photos
All 9,200 Nightlife Photos in 450 Contact Sheets

1000's of Exotic World Travel Photos
1980's Details Magazine Tear-sheets
230 Toronto Social Columns
and Original Web Projects

Photocyclopedia of 80's New York Nightlife

Feature New York Legend Albums and
Celebrity/Nightlife A-Z Albums
by John Simone Photography

Click to view RuPaul:

Click to view Sister Dimension:

Click to view Leigh Bowery:

Click to view Lady Bunny:

Click to view Michael Musto:

Click to view A Files:

Click to view B Files:

Click to view C Files:

Click to view D Files:

Click to view E-F-G Files:

Click to view H-I Files:

Click to view J Files:

Click to view K Files:

Click to view L Files:

Click to view M Files:

Click to view N Files:

Click to view R Files:

Click to view S Files:

Click to view T-Z Files:

Click to view James St. James:

Click to view Susanne Bartsch:

Click to view It Twins:

Click to view Nanzi Zipkin:

Click to view International Chrysis:

Click to view Julie Jewels:

Click to view Michael Alig:

Click to view Larry Tee:

Click to view Goldy Loxx:

Click to view Miss Perfidia:

Click to view Joey Arias:

Click to view:

Click to view Denise Stoughton:

Click to view Downtown People:

jetsetjohnny.ca
Exotic World Travel
John Simone Photography

Simone spent 5 years traveling
to over 80 countries as Senior Photographer
and Photography Teacher on Princess Cruises

These are the first Forty-four cities posted - with more to follow

Click to View any city to visit on John Simone Photography's jetsetjohnny.ca: