Fieldwork

If you’ve never been to the Canadian arctic you might have the impression that it’s a barren land, and if you’ve only ever been in winter than you have reason to belive that’s true.  It’s certainly harsh in the winter, and the landscape is mostly white except for the few dots of black where the snow has been scoured off the rock by the wind.  However, in the summer the tundra comes to life, and throuh my work I’ve had the privledge of spending time on the land in July and August explaoring beautiful places like Southampton Island.

I decided to use Southampton Island as the conceptual location in my sculptures because during my travels I’ve seen so many different species of birds nesting and feeding there.  Whether it’s gulls, terns, or geese that you encounter in the summer months depends solely on what part of the island you visit.  Each species breeds in different landscapes, and the island is varied in topography and plant life  to offer many birds their ideal locations for raising their young.  The picture above, of snow geese, was taken near the town of Coral Harbour.

Click on these images to enlarge them.  Both of these photos were taken in an area called Duke of York Bay.  It’s a large bay by southern Ontario standards, but because the view is not blocked by trees it’s possible to see most of the bay from a single vantage point.  One the west side of the bay the land is flat and dominated by limestone beaches and sedge/grass vegitation.  This is where I saw huge flocks of geese - too numerous to even guess at the numbers.  On the eastern side of the bay the land rises up dramatically.  The rocks here are grey or red, and black and orange lichens cover the surfaces.  In the picture on the right you can see the nesting birds on the cliffs.

 Places like this have only a short season to give life to the birds and to take on the beauty of arctic plant life in full bloom.  Some of the local Inuit residents that I’ve worked with say that they’ve seen signs of change in these environments - the seasons are longer, the plants are growing larger and new plants are now seen here.  It’s such a beautiful place and it’s vital to understand the impacts that changing climate could have on the life cycles of people, plants, animals and birds. 

Next week I’m giving a talk on the plants and landscapes of the island to the horticulture society in Almonte Ontario.  The talk is under the theme "Inspired by arctic landscapes", but along with this message of beauty is the cautionary note that some of the plants that I have photographed my be under threat from changes in their environment.  But I enjoy the beauty too, and this place continues to inspire me. - Chris G.

(photo by D. Richens)

A telescope is a tool for exploration, and looking inside this sculpture takes you into a completely different world.  Looking inside telescope you’ll catch a glimpse of migratory birds heading into a northern sky.  Carved from cedar trees, the piece is an assemblage of parts that reference the public telescopes that you can see at tourist locations around Ontario, such as Niagara Falls. 

Telescopes offer you a glimspe of distant objects.  Inside telescope a flock of ceramic birds fly away from you.  The sculpture is pointing towards Southampton Island in Nunavut.  This island has two large migratory bird sanctuaries and it’s the location that inspired the interior landscape of telescope and periscope.  During a visit to Southampton Island one summer I spotted a huge flock of breeding snow geese on the tundra.  The flock was so large that at first glance I thought I was looking a a massive snow bank.  As we tried to move closer to the birds they kept moving away from us, drifting as a mass across the land. It was an impressive sight, and although we never got close enough to see the individual geese, the image of that flock hasn’t been forgotten.

 Susie O sets her sights on the flock

Each of the sculptures in the migra-scoping installation has been influenced  by my experiences in northern Canada, and by my enjoyment of visiting museums and tourist sites where dioramas depict scenes of far away places or historical events. 

telescope references these influences.  The sculpture places the viewer and birds at at opposite ends of the painted scene depicted in this diorama, giving the impression that this is the last glimpse the viewer will have of these birds before they fly noth and out of sight.  This expresses the loss that we in the southern part of Canada may experience if climate change results in some birds staying in the arctic year round.   But the north offers these birds a haven, and telescope is also intended to get us to think about the importance of protecting these northern breeding grounds.  Perhaps viewing these birds only at a distance will help them to adapt to the changing environment.

For another glimpse inside telescope, check out the photos under the blog entry "installing the migra-scopes".

That’s all for today - Chris G.