Born in Montréal in 1954, René Balcer studied photography and visual representation at Concordia University. Inspired by such artists as Edward Hopper and Ed Ruscha and photographers Robert Capa, Leonard Freed, and Liliane De Cock, Balcer began his photography work in 1968. Eschewing studio work and staged images, Balcer searches for natural compositions that suggest a sense of disquietude and an implied or hidden narrative, as well as images that engage his interest in social justice. While pursuing an award-winning career in film and television in Los Angeles, he has continued his photography practice, completing such photo essays as “Desaparecidos” and “Beleaguered Trees of Los Angeles.” In 2023, ACC Art Books (UK) published René Balcer: Seeing As, a retrospective of his work. He has lectured widely about photography, writing, and the duties of artists, notably at Columbia University, NYU, Harvard, UCLA, USC, UPenn, Central Academy of Fine Arts (Beijing), the Sorbonne, the Journalists Club (Moscow), The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, the Wolfsonian (Miami), and the Century Association (NY). Forensics is his first solo photography exhibition.
