Gabor Szilasi became interested in photography after he was forced to interrupt his medical studies in Hungary, having been blacklisted after attempting to flee the country to escape the incoming communist regime in 1949. From November 15-25 1956, Szilasi used his camera to document the Hungarian Revolution. Escaping from Hungary in 1957, Szilasi arrived in Halifax and later settled in Montréal in 1959. Employed by the Office du film du Québec, Szilasi worked on photography assignments in Montreal as well as in rural regions of Québec to document the province, particularly the rural regions.