ISLAND PART I
Exhibit Catalogue
January 14 February 5 2021
Esquimalt, BC
There is a lot of mystery surrounding the octopus. It has been seen as a source of food and a mythological figure, almost alien even to the undersea world which we still struggle to understand. It only makes sense that a creature of such intelligence would play a large and mysterious role in traditional stories, often being portrayed with very human attributes, sometimes with artistic talents, or occasionally swallowing people whole at sea. Here, I have depicted this octopus, abstracted outside of the Northwest Coast form with an art deco/cubist semblance, foraging amongst the bull kelp.
Naw Guuda (Octopus Box) James Crawford 30 ½ x 25 ¾ Glass, lead, cedar, operculum Non-Member Price $1725 Member Price $1553
The Crow Bobbi Bjornholt ECAH Represented 16 x 24 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $380 Member Price $342 SOLD
This painting feels like pieces of a dream, calling to mind journeys of the past. I kee loo ing back o mall ma k I e lef on landscapes in small ways, and in turn how a landscape shapes my existence by leaving small traces in me as memories. This ain ing al o eak o ha lo when our mark making becomes too much for our ecosystems to bear and we rely on only the memories of past inhabitants. I have my own memories embedded into this piece, and I feel loss and hope. I hope you feel something too.
Past Inhabitants Claire Gaulin-Brown - ECAH Represented 62 x 44
Gouache with ink on paper
Non-Member Price $2100
Member Price $1890
Throughout the history of art, a vanitas depicted the fleeting nature of life, often showing contrasting symbols of wealth and certain death with the use of carefully placed items throughout the composition. In my own rendition, it is animal skulls that are depicted instead of the traditional human skull to show the tipping of the scales, that as we amass wealth we might also be forgetting not only the fleeting nature of life, but the fleeting life of nature.
Death of Vanitas Claire Gaulin-Brown - ECAH Represented 30 x 40 Gouache with ink on paper Non-Member Price $1200 Member Price $1080
Nah i i Lake i on Vanco e I land Northern tip, and is the inland stepping stone to the coastal waters of the Northern Pacific Coast. We were greeted with warm weather, but copious amounts of rain. We made camp at the lake, and just before our departure the fog lifted just enough for a small Island at the end of the lake to peek through the fog. Each of the trees on that little island had their own story to tell standing strong, proud and full of mystery.
Summer Rain on Nahwitti Lake Jordan Fritz - ECAH Represented 30 x 24 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $899 Member Price $810 SOLD
A small tree has found its home, roots deep into a forgotten, fallen elder, that sits beneath the water's surface. On one hand a story of resilience on the other a story of fear, of hiding away from the dangers that industry and deforestation poses to its surrounding ancient elders.
Fairy Lake Estate Jordan Fritz - ECAH Represented 24 x 30 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $799 Member Price $720
At the end of the day, the sky falls, and the lights draws thin. It peaks its many faces through the deep, temperate rainforest on the Southern Tip of Vancouver Island. It is cautious light, that leaves me with only feelings. Feelings of appreciation and gratitude for the life that stands ahead, but fearful and worried for the darkness that sits behind.
Illuminating Darkness Jordan Fritz - ECAH Represented 24 x 30 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $799 Member Price $720
Standing among mossy giants, I feel the pure energy of life run from the sky, deep into the ground and disperse itself through my veins. Words do not suffice. A feeling is all that remains. Teach me how to feel, how to connect, and maybe I will remember. I hope we remember before all our teachers are gone.
The Great Teachers Jordan Fritz - ECAH Represented 24 x 30 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $799 Member Price $720
As the summer sun tucked behind the Malahat Summit, I sat with my easel looking through the trees at Mckenzie Bight. The water was glassy and textured, taking on the colours of the dusk sky. The trees that stood just in front of me moved with care, rhythmically following the patterns of the water and blending into the setting sky.
Malahat Reflections
Jordan Fritz - ECAH Represented 18 x 24 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $599 Member Price $540
We swam in waters that resembled tropical paradise, we saw thousands of glowing jellyfish, bears and humpback whales. For a few days as distant visitors, it felt as if we had stepped into the rhythm of an otherworldly place, floating in its' waters, combing its' beaches and wandering through its' ancient forests.
Hesquiat Rhythms Jordan Fritz ECAH Represented 18 x 24 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $599 Member Price $540
Movement and Perception II and IV are hybrids between acrylic paintings and optical sculptures. In my practice, I focus on the relationships between artist, artwork, viewer and space every component is essential to the interactive experience.
Movement and Perception II Alison Klymchuk 36 x 65 (x2) Acrylic on canvas Non-Member $2100 Member Price $1890
Movement and Perception IV alludes to the island as a place that is filled with increasingly diverse and equally interdependent relationships. Water carries people in and out of the island, constantly shifting and expanding our communities. As visitors on stolen indigenous territory, our relationships cannot thrive without engaging with local intergenerational connections and protecting the land that fosters these interactions.
Movement and Perception IV Alison Klymchuk 39 x 38.5 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $1300 Member Price $1170
The Bear Bobbi Bjornholt - ECAH Represented 16 x 24 Acrylic on canvas Non-Member Price $380 Member Price $342
Island Living is a tribute to this spectacular place. The 3D map of Vancouver Island, surrounding islands and southern Great Bear Rainforest was a custom creation for the 2019 oneTree Exhibit at the Bateman Foundation Gallery of Nature, which celebrated the value of a single tree. Island Living combines glass, metal and live edge slab from a 200-year old maple that grew on a historic Chemainus farm. The lands and a e ha ha ed he ee life a e ca ed in o a o og a hical ma that will allow people to continue gathering in its presence for years to come. Land & Water Studio is the result of a life's worth of passion for nature, woodwork and creativity by artist Marc deMontigny. Marc uses the precision of a CNC machine together with hand tools and digital o og a hical ma da a o ca e BC be loved landscapes. He uses nontoxic materials and wood that is locally and responsibly sourced, often reclaimed. For Island Living Marc, it is a privilege to work with clients Marc deMontigny on custom legacy pieces that reflect the 3.8 x 6.4 special connections they feel to the places Solid old-growth maple, glass and metal they love. Non-Member Price $8200
No Man Is An Island is a piece inspired by the poem of like title written by English poet John Donne. No Man Is An Island expresses the interconnectivity and dependence that humans have with our environment. The piece encourages everyone to live responsibly and with respect for the land, water and beings that connect and sustain us. In understanding that our individual actions do not happen in isolation, but instead have broader implications for the environment and other species, we can make conscious choices that intentionally promote the health and longevity of our ecosystems and planet.
No Man Is An Island Mal Blondeau 24 x 30
Digital
Non-Member Price $100 (unframed)
Member Price $90
ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES
BOBBI BJORNHOLT
Bobbi Bjornholt is an arist from Victoria BC, With Danish and Canadian roots. Bobbi holds a BFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design in the Vancouver, BC. She shows her paintings and prints regularly on Vancouver Island. Influenced by historical stories, legends, vintage illustrations, urban street art and skate art, I make paintings about natural spaces and animals. I take photos on my trips into the forest on a motorcycle to use as a study of light and colour.
MAL BLONDEAU
Mal Blondeau is a Métis artist located on the traditional homelands of the Lekwungen speaking people (Victoria, British Columbia). Mal creates art and pattern designs that are inspired by the floral beadwork of her Indigenous ancestors. Through her art, Mal explores the interconnectivity of all nature and beings and gives voice to Indigenous and environmental issues.
JAMES CRAWFORD
I am culturally very adaptable, I think. I tend to have an understanding of my surroundings and fit in where I am. I was raised by a Sami (indigenous Swedish) / Polish Mother and a Scottish / English Father. They did everything they could to make me feel my own true roots and heritage, being predominately Haida, matrilineally, of course, at the same time showing me that they would always be my family, through anything and everything, which today is still true.I think that I have often struggled to find an identity within the many cultures of my own life. My art, I feel, follows those trends at times, if not always, struggling to find an identity in all of this. Some things, a lifetime will not provide an understanding for, though in our various means of expression, perhaps we can find a truth in our questions.
My art itself has a journey of its own to find its own identity, both in form as well as belonging, or even in personal means of expression - I write, I draw, I carve, I design and play music. I build and I blacksmith. As a young boy, I learned how to make lino block prints a passion which I have recently rediscovered. I met my biological mother and family just before my twentieth birthday. I quit my job working in a music store in a mall on my twentieth birthday, and left what had become my home, Victoria B.C. in February, 2000. I travelled north, to new adventure... In April of 2000, I began working for the Haida Gwaii Watchmen Program in the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve in the southern part of Moresby Island, Haida Gwaii. There I spent the next ten years of my life, in the spring and summer months, caring for the villages of my ancestors. I worked in Skedans, Tanu, Windy Bay, Hotspring Island and Sgan Gwaii, maintaining the villages by removing growth from the poles and house remains, as well as cutting the grass around them. Though many of the poles have been removed and transported to various museums and collections around the world, there was always lots to do there, between the conservation work and the tourists. Another part of the job was also to maintain a somewhat traditional lifestyle as well, so we spent a lot of time fishing and gathering seafood and berries.
Inspired by the art and way of life of my ancestors, I enrolled in the Freda Diesing School of Northwest Coast Art in 2008, where I received instruction from Stan Bevan, Ken McNeil and Dempsey Bob. Over the two years in which i completed my diploma from the school, I learned to draw, paint and carve in the Northwest Coast style, and eventually in my own Haida style, which i will continue to develop over my lifetime. Though and am still learning the stories of my ancestors, I have learned to tell the stories of my own life through my art. The old knowledge is the key to making sense of the contemporary forms art has taken. I believe the art is not a dead language, but rather a living one, changing constantly, as do our ways of life. So, like art, I too shall change in my journey through life, and continue to express these things in whatever medium I may chose, for the rest of my days.
-James Crawford
JORDAN FRITZ
Hello, my name is Jordan Fritz and I am an artist residing on the West Coast of British Columbia, Canada. My work is heavily influenced by the landscapes of Vancouver Island and Coastal Canada, and as a relative newcomer I must acknowIedge the Coast Salish, and Nuu-chah-nulth peoples of Vancouver Island and the Coastal Mainland as the original keepers, and stewards of this land. As much of my work is based in these places, It is my wish to share the stories of these lands, and capture the powerful emotions that I have felt while visiting these places, with the hope that I might inspire, you, my viewers to find your own meaningful connection with these lands.
For me, art itself is a process of discovery and healing. It doesn't come without its challenges, and it has not been a easy journey, but it is one that I believe is worthwhile. I hope that through following my own passion for sharing the beauty and stories I see, I can create important conversations, and bring joy to others lives through my art. My medium of choice is currently acrylic paints on canvas, but I also experiment with oils, watercolours and inks on occasion. Alongside my Art practice, I also love working with my clients as a graphic designer. I also create my own custom frames for original canvas works.
I love hearing from my community, other artists and people who want to collaborate, I'd love to hear from you, please feel free to get in touch any time!
CLAIRE GAULIN-BROWN
Her work deals with our relationship to the natural environment and creates tension by contrasting whimsical pastels with striking imagery. Claire is an artist and illustrator living and working on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Claire works with watercolour, gouache, pen and ink and much of her work aims to depict the deep interconnectivity of humans and animals as beautiful, destructive, hopeful, and helpless.
While Clai e o k i of en de c ibed a him ical kee an e e o fo he of en macab e nde one ed in o der to bring these faces of conflict and connection to life. Claire uses her artistic voice to speak up about environmental justice both around the world and in her own backyard on the Pacific Coast. When Claire is not painting she can be found running trails, surfing on the coast, and cooking delicious plant-based meals with her husband.
ALISON KLYMCHUK
Born in Ontario, Alison Klymchuk is a multidisciplinary artist living and working on unceded WSÁNEĆ ̱ Lk ngen and W omil h territory (Victoria, BC). She is currently studying towards a B.F.A. at the University of Victoria in British-Columbia. With a strong foundation in painting and drawing, Alison works to transform the language and experience of the flattened picture-plane, challenging traditional methods of creation as a way to expand accessibility into visual arts culture.
Through sculptural cues, she brings attention to the interactive relationship between artwork, viewer, artist and space. Her most recent projects involve urban interventions that function to destabilize institutional standards of what is considered to be art, the spatial boundaries of these c ea i e e e ience and ho ha acce o hem Ali on o k ha been e hibi ed h o gho Vanco e I land a Col ood Coa Collec i e A Cen e and Vic o ia Kinema S dio among o he She ha been fea ed in online blica ion incl ding Vic o ia A Co ncil UNTIL I e and The Union Ho e A i of he Mon h Com e i ion Ma Edi ion
PLAN YOUR VISIT TO ECAH
Location 901 Esquimalt Road Esquimalt, BC V9A 3N8 We are located inside West Bay Landing on Esquimalt Road.
Public Hours Wednesday - Saturday 10 am to 5 pm
Cost Free to visit the gallery and gift shop!
Phone Free Parking (604) 999-8427 There are 2 accessible parking spots in front of the gallery on the south side of Esquimalt Road. Email [email protected] There is free parking on the north side of Esquimalt Road (across the street) from the gallery.
The e i al o a i i o a king lo behind We Ba Landing The entrance is off Head Street.
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