Leaving Good Things Behind

When a family tragedy pulled photojournalist Darren Calabrese back to Atlantic Canada, the region both he and his wife once called home, he was confronted with a sense of profound grief. But, on returning to the rural property where he grew up, as a new father, he rediscovered an appreciation for the geographies, histories, and people of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador, turning his lens to explore the tension between the perseverance of tradition and the inevitability of change. Darren’s work led him into communities across the eastern provinces, who welcomed him to document the inextricable relationship between people, their stories, and the landscapes—equally beautiful and harsh—where they live and work. The result is an astonishing, evocative collection of curated photographs and archival images, with personal essays on family, coming home, loss, and his experiences exploring the region woven in throughout. Elegant, spare, and revelatory at every turn, Leaving Good Things Behind shines a light on both the challenges and joys of the places we live.