Extractions
This exhibit reflected on the abundance of natural resources in British Columbia that have inspired artists for millennia. Some artists have extracted from nature to create art, while others use art to comment on these extractions. While artists often capture the beauty and grandeur of the landscape, the artworks in Extractions highlight our use and abuse of land-based resources, such as mineral extraction, logging and aquatic and land farming, today and historically. This exhibit was funded by Metro Vancouver's Regional Cultural Cultural Projects Grants Program.
Alexander Erickson
Weegits Privation
At one point, Weegit (Raven) had plenty. Now, with all the logging, his beloved cedar trees are becoming fewer and farther between, and humans are doing other detrimental things to his homelands. The front panel shows Weegit, in full form; next, his beloved cedar home with clean air; third, Weegit begins to become depressed and, finally, a stump where the spirit of the tree is leaving with a polluted aura in the wake of a fresh clear cut logging block. Front and back are skewed, reflecting the shift that happened and is happening again.
Amy Siddaway
Mine Cart/Catapillar/Core/Lever
These are Amy Siddaway's series of drawings from the Brittania Mining Museum of B.C.. Mining is a part of the artist's personal heritage. Many of her family members were involved in the mining industry in BC. Throughout the better part of the 1900s, Amy's family dedicated their lives to this industry, like many other British Columbians. From shoveling hot muck, to mine rescue operations, to business endeavors and engineering, her roots are embedded here in B.C.. While it's easy to criticize the mining industry for its impact on the environment, it's important to remember that, over the last 100 years, mining was a way of life for many Canadians.
Catapillar by Amy Siddaway
Core by Amy Siddaway
Lever by Amy Siddaway
Mine Cart by Amy Siddaway
Chris Block
Business As Usual/Cutting Edge Tech
As a society, we have been squandering our resources in an inappropriate manner for centuries. When will we learn to use our finite resources in an appropriate way? These watercolours provide a commentary on two local resource refining operations in Coquitlam where one might ask the question "Can we not be doing better?"
Business As Usual by Chris Block
Cutting Edge Tech by Chris Block
Christine Delay
Fell the Giant
Of the 200,000 hectares of forest logged annually in British Columbia, about a quarter of it is old-growth. As recently as 2003, old-growth logging made up the majority of harvested areas in our province. It is still common practice today. Our heritage is deeply rooted in the logging industry and without it our current economy would cease to thrive. However, when we compare a centuries old tree to disposable products that are made from its harvesting, there is no question which one holds more value.
Fell the Giant explores the complex relationship between our logging industry and its impact on the future of British Columbia’s old-growth trees. I ask the viewer “ what holds deeper meaning and value? Convenience and entertainment? Or the link to our ancestors and the earth?”
David Martinello
Reverence
There is a tragic allure to slash piles, a product of clear cuts where waste is dragged together. Although bereft of monetary value to the lumber industry, the stacks still hold potential with an intrinsic beauty and function that can be associated with all wood. Slash piles read as waste while harkening to the forest that once was, but are also signals for future aspirations. Reverence shows the value of timber, as part of an evolving and tenacious system, by using environmental associations for the colour green as a way to consider multiple perspectives of the landscape.
Ilka Bauer
Rent
This sculpture was inspired by British Columbia’s forest tenure system, the complex legal framework used by the Province to assign rights to timber. It includes excerpts from section 35 of the Forest Act, which lays out the content of a tree farm license.
Tree farm licenses and other long-term forest tenures have brought the province wealth, but they have also been flash points for controversy - from vocal disagreements over how (and in whose interest) public lands should be managed, to ground-breaking court cases asking who (the Crown or First Nations) hold title in the first place.
Undue
Undue considers the role of administrative discretion in decision-making about resources. It incorporates text from the BC Forest Planning and Practices Regulation, which specifies government objectives for values such as wildlife, soils, and biodiversity - in each case, the objective is to meet specified conservation goals “without unduly reducing the supply of timber from British Columbia’s forests.”
This begs the question: What is “undue”?
Rent by Ilka Bauer
Rent by Ilka Bauer
Rent by Ilka Bauer
Undue by Ilka Bauer
Undue by Ilka Bauer
Undue by Ilka Bauer
Undue by Ilka Bauer
Jasmine Alexander
Green Fee
Green Fee is inspired by the Cable Bay Trail in Snuneymuxw First Nations/Nanaimo, B.C. that is being developed into the city’s seventh golf course. When completed, the golf course will be one of over forty golf courses on Vancouver Island. At the time of writing this, development on the trail is already underway, despite the efforts of a local petition signed by 18,436 people. This painting, called Green Fee, in reference to golf course and clubhouse memberships, is a love letter to the land untouched by industrial development and is a reflection on land consumption in our region.
Judy Villette and Martha Jablonski Jones
North of Lillooet
North of Lillooet is a collaborative interpretation of a satellite image showing the large areas of deforestation often hidden behind a thing wall of trees left standing along roads and highways. Our challenge was to create beauty from the devastation of clearcutting.
Martha painted the image onto cotton which Judy layered and machine quilted, embroidered, and embellished. The finished tapestry-like surface becomes a jewel-like geometric pattern.
Do we lose nature, forget about her, dress her up or rescue her? Is there a more sensitive way to cull trees for man’s use without destroying the entity of forest?
Karen Colville
Ancient Sand Fish Fossil Gabriola Sandstone
This piece references long-term protection of wild salmon and steelhead ecosystems in BC’s inner central coast. Ancient DNA (aDNA) was extracted from fish bones to confirm historical accounts that the primary species that was harvested by people in the settlements was the chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta). A June paper in Journal of Archaeological Science explains, “Reports unearthed other historical records that suggested Indigenous fishers preferentially harvested male salmon over females, stock preservation.”
Kelly Haydon
Dominion I
Dominion shows a bison standing on the Dominion building as a herd runs down the street. The Canadian Dominion was built on resource extraction including the killing of millions of animals for the fur trade. This included the slaughter of the bison to the point where only 116 of the original 30 million were left in 1880. The eradication of the bison was also a tool in the genocide of indigenous peoples. I dream of a time when the world is in balance and the bison return.
Lesley DeHaan
Book Tree/Broken Plate/Grass Carpet
I explore nature taking back human-made objects, making them no longer usable for their intended purpose. Each object I use was taken from the intended garbage or recycling so I’m not removing potentially still useful objects from the world.
Book Tree by Lesley DeHaan
Broken Plate by Lesley DeHaan
Grass Carpet by Lesley DeHaan
Lisa Nolan
More Orca Less
Lisa Nolan is an emerging BC artist whose art practice focuses on landscapes and Species at Risk. In her 2016 political piece titled “More Orca Less Pipeline” Lisa is expressing her frustration towards the Government of Canada’s decision to put a pipeline through the magnificent landscape of the Rocky Mountains to the Port of Vancouver. That decision will increase tanker traffic and underwater noise in the Salish Sea and will negatively impact out southern resident killer whale population which is designated as “endangered” - a designation that means “at risk of extinction.” Our whales need quieter water and fewer tanker propellers.
Luke Pardy
This Old Broken Back of Mine
My series, This Old Broken Back of Mine, documents the landscape of labour in the Fraser Valley region of British Columbia, where I grew up. The places shown in this series are industrial labour sites and forest regions, both of which have been integral to B.C.’s cultural identity and economy since colonization. The Western landscape has long been documented with a lens that sees a myth of opportunity and promise. My work show contemporary realities of the compulsively perpetuated myth of the West, now in decline, and the ruin of industry it has left.
Mildred Grace German
Start the Healing
We have everything to solve and resolve global problems. Let us start the healing.
Pierre Leichner
Worm Signals - Foot Print Series #1
Agrochemicals are damaging to soil fertility by harming the earthworms’ population in our gardens and farms. This project uses art to demonstrate the repulsion earthworms have to these commonly available insecticides, fungicides, and fertilizers, thus making the viewer aware of this issue.
The Canadian Drug Reference for Health Professionals (CPS) Open Pit Gold and Diamond Mines, Timmins Mine, Canada
Mining our planet for resources as if these are inexhaustible, and as if the effects of mining are disconnected from the global environment, is a growing concern. I have carved a series of open pit mines and coal mines from around world into Pharmaceutical Compendiums. The Compendium of Pharmaceuticals and Specialties (CPS) is the most widely used source of drug information in Canada, and is heavily financed by the pharmaceutical industry. These issues are very relevant to Canadians. There are meaningful associations and metaphors to be drawn from both industries.
Worm Signals - Foot Print Series #1 by Pierre Leichner
The Canadian Drug Reference for Health Professionals (CPS) Open Pit Gold and Diamond Mines, Timmins Mine, Canada by Pierre Leichner
Richard Tetrault
Underground #1/Underground #2, Ghost Miner
I am interested in the dynamics of workers in their environment, reflecting these realms in paintings, prints, and murals. These two pieces evolved through my explorations of mining while visiting gold mining parts of British Columbia. There are commonalities in various kinds of mining; the ore cars, miners’ clothing and headlamps, drills, and other tools for excavation. Then there is the always-present element of danger. In an age that is striving for solar, wind and other sustainable power sources, these activities of mining appear archaic. Yet, in many regions of the world, it is a reality. I hope to present the mystery, and perhaps the transcendental aspect, of working in these rarefied and dangerous conditions.
Underground #1 by Richard Tetrault
Underground #2, Ghost Miner by Richard Tetrault
Robi Smith
Cook Inlet Beluga
Beluga whales that reside in Cook Inlet, Alaska, are endangered due to human activity - overfishing, underwater noise, shipping and energy exploration, and development. Their population has declined by more than 80% since 1979. This mixed media painting shows active oil and gas rigs in the Inlet, (ironically named after the species they threaten), as well as the different types of fish these Belugas depend on.
Protector
Western Red Cedar (Thuja plicata) trees are long-lived and have been traditionally stewarded by local First Nations peoples who used every part of the tree. Science has shown that these powerful trees contain a chemical called α-thujone which is antibacterial, antiseptic, antiviral, and antifungal.
Wild salmon are integral to the health of Western Red Cedar trees and have been scientifically linked to a specific isotope. At the end of their life cycle, the salmon use their keen sense of smell to lead them back to the stream where they were born in order to continue the cycle of life. Bears bring the salmon deeper into the forest where their carcasses fertilize the soil and trees.
Industrial logging and commercial over-fishing interrupt the full functioning of coastal ecosystems in ways we are only starting to fully understand.
Cook Inlet Beluga by Robi Smith
Protector by Robi Smith
Rose L. Williams
Liquidambar Vibes
Naturally occurring tannins in plants and trees are an industrial resource for tanning leather and of natural dyes. My artwork harnesses this natural pigment for colour and pattern using leaves & repurposed textiles to create prints, then paintings, about the healing power of nature. This piece features the English Walnut and historically charged Logwood dye of my Caribbean ancestry. Establishing a creative connection to these remaining accessible wilder spaces is paramount to my process and humanity’s overall well-being.
Shannon Thiesen
Silver Ann
The Silver Ann, a gillnetter fishing vessel, was originally built in 1969 by Sadajiro Asari and the Richmond Boat Builders in Steveston, BC. Local fisherman, George Osaka, commissioned the boat, named in celebration of he and his wife’s silver (25th) anniversary. The Silver Ann was the last boat built in the facility before it closed, ending a rich history of boat building in the area. The Silver Ann sank in 2001, was refloated, then abandoned, then eventually acquired and restored by the City of Richmond from 2005-2009. This work was painted en plein air, on site in Steveston, where the ship was moored. It represents B.C.’s rich fishing, canning, and historic Japanese influence on the industry.
Shelley Rothenburger
Quiet Bunny Loves the Sound of Infrastructure/Little Bunny is Non-Combustible Type II/Quiet Bunny Finds his Beat
I have been following and documenting the stages of construction in my backyard in Richmond from, literally, the ground up. I have started an expressive, abstract painting collage series reflecting on the aggressive processes of “development.” Building sites are everywhere in Richmond and other lower mainland areas. This series shows typical construction machinery in action, ripping up land and older housing in the name of development; a construction - deconstruction cycle that I am following as things proceed. Another thing I have observed is neighbourhood rabbits, which are considered a pest in Richmond, showing up in the midst of all the action and curiously lounging around among the gravel cement, dirt and heavy machinery, completely unafraid. I cannot explain this but the bunnies have become a symbolic part of my subject matter in this series.
Quiet Bunny Loves the Sound of Infrastructure by Shelley Rothenburger
Little Bunny is Non-Combustible Type II by Shelley Rothenburger
Quiet Bunny Finds His Beat by Shelley Rothenburger
Sherida Charles
Monster Slash Heap at Mamquam, 2022
This piece documents the awesome slash heap of discarded wood and tree branches left behind from clear cut logging practices near Squamish. I saw this pile of dead wood, which was at least 10 feet all, and to me it resembled a giant monstrous creature. It made me feel the vastness of the waste involved in our logging practices. There were numerous large piles just like this heaped where the trees used to stand, with many very close to the road. I used charcoal to try and capture the starkness and vaguely threatening character of the slash pile. Charcoal is made of burnt wood, and a high contrast image seemed to fit the harshness of this reality for tree life.
Night Fir - Abstraction
This piece is based on a Douglas fir I saw on Quadra island. The lighting was dramatic and drew my eye to the trunk, stark against the nigh sky. Logging is a common practice, even on Gulf Islands. I decry the loss of any strong older trees and want to highlight the beauty of our forests. The work is a woodcut, meaning I carved a piece of birch plywood to create the plate. This also comments on resource use as plywood is a lumber product most often used in construction. That it can also be used in artistic production may lead to less waste in terms of wood products that come from our trees. In this case I carved both sides of the plywood to make the most of the material. The other side was the plate for another version of this image.
Monster Slash Heap at Mumquam, 2022 by Sherida Charles
Night Fir - Abstraction by Sherida Charles
Tammy Cripps
Vessel - Breathe, Open Series 2
Merging unconventional mediums and traditional techniques, into 2D and 3D work, has been a constant endeavour of mine. The use of unfired clay has played an integral part in my art practice, especially in my Vessels which represent the origins of my work in the permanence of unfired clay. These have evolved from much experimentation and from a variety of processes, as evident in the burnishing, coiling, collaging, painting and/or sewing of clay. My inspiration comes from the readily available materials in my environment. Incorporating raw materials found in nature, such as creek clays, silt, and beach sands are extractions vital to my work.
Teodora Zamfirescu
Landslide XL
Landslide XL is a depiction of a famous landslide on the Gold Rush trail, in Canada’s Klondike region, specifically Dawson City, Yukon. This landslide, known to the local Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Nation as Ëdhä Dädhëcha, or as Moosehide Slide to settlers, holds both mythological and socio-political symbolism. According to the local mythology, Dänojà people lived relatively peaceful lives in Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in country until cannibals came along. In settler history, tens of thousands of eager gold seekers arrived in 1897 and lived on the slide during a housing shortage. Gold digging wreaked serious havoc on the land. The government’s pro-development attitude of maximizing resource extraction resulted in irremediable changes to the environment in this region.
Valerie Durant
New Growth
Paper shopping bags are reimagined, combined with carbon and earth pigments collected from the forest floor. The materials are cast in moulds, created from bark remnants.
Trees, harvested for consumer use, come full circle to reflect upon their source of origin in the forest. Through the papermaking process, the sculptures convey concepts of continuum and regeneration that exist in nature.
Roots nourish the ecosystem in the web of life and are the communication network that link the community of trees and organisms in the complex living system within the forest. Even after the death of a tree, the roots provide nourishment for new growth.
