Local
artist in Wilderness expedition for Smithsonian ‘Visions of the
Boreal Forest’ exhibition - July 31 to Aug. 31, 2012
In support of "Visions
of the Boreal Forest" - A touring exhibition project of the Wilderness
River Expedition Art Foundation (WREAF), the Canadian Boreal Initiative
(CBI) and the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History
(NMNH)
An uncontrolled forest
fire, designated “Red 124” was to disrupt WREAF's month long
"Heart of the Boreal Forest Expedition", painting and painting
on the Bloodvein River, which flows through Woodland Caribou Provincial
Park in Ontario and Atikaki Provincial Park in Manitoba and empties into
Lake Winnipeg. The goal of this 14th in an ongoing series of wilderness
art and natural history expeditions, was to paint and photograph the pristine
wilderness that forms the heart of the Boreal Forest. The Boreal is the
largest terrestrial ecosystem on Earth and the region of the Bloodvein
is within the southern portion of the largest, contiguous block of forest
remaining in the world.
WREAF has partnered
with CBI, the Canadian Wildlife Federation, CPAWS, outfitters and various
outdoor equipment companies to facilitate these trips through the Boreal
Forest (one including wildlife artist Robert Bateman) to enable artists
to experience and record the Boreal Forest through canoe trips. The artists
create paintings and photography and the final studio artwork is planned
to appear in an exhibition "Visions of the Boreal Forest" being
developed for the Smithsonian NMNH with generous support from TD Bank
and targeted to open in 2014 or 2015 followed by a 3-5 year tour of Canada
and the US.
"Visions of
the Boreal Forest" will be a 6,000 sq ft tripartite fusion of art,
science and indigenous perspectives of the largest terrestrial ecosystem
on Earth with a uniting theme of wilderness travel, which for thousands
of years has been and continues to be the inherent human experience of
the Boreal Forest ." Rob Mullen (wilderness artist, expedition canoeist,
WREAF founder/Director and co-lead curator of "Visions").
The crew of six consisted
of; wildlife artist, Julia Hargreaves of Kelowna, BC and landscape artist
Dawn Banning, joining WREAF veterans Rob Mullen and Canadian canoe experts,
adventurers and photojournalists, Gary and Joanie McGuffin, their 12 yr
old daughter Sila and 1 yr old malamute Luna. Artists Julia Hargreaves
of Kelowna BC and dawn Banning from Windsor Ontario, were chosen from
500 artists on the Artists for Conservation website. Julia Hargreaves
was chosen to paint the migrant songbirds, which, because of the destruction
of their winter habitat are increasingly at risk.
The initial trip,
which was to be a whitewater canoe trip down the Bloodvein River and into
Manitoba, was revised, after the forest fire exploded overnight from 200
hectares into a raging inferno, which eventually covered an area of 21,575
hectares. The crew of experienced wilderness paddlers was inadvertently
heading straight to wards the fire. “It was the cloud of orange
smoke and hot ashes landing on our tents, which alerted us that something
had changed.” The following morning a park ranger landed from a
helicopter onto their island campsite and informed the crew that they
had better leave right away.
Back again at the
start point in Red Lake, Woodland Caribou Provincial Park officials assisted
the crew Director to choose another route, this time through several lakes
towards the Southern end of the park, a route which was to take in several
ancient pictograph sites, acres of wilderness lakes, and pristine old
growth forest
“Spending time
in the wilderness was a very life changing experience”, said Okanagan
wildlife artist, Julia Hargreaves. “I felt safe the whole time I
was there and had chance to study all aspects of the forest, from the
tiny lichens, to the rocks, water and magnificent skies, the silence and
stillness broken only by the call of the loons. The water is so pure I
drank straight out of the lake. Living with the very minimum basic requirements
was very liberating and I didn’t miss the comforts of home. I have
thousands of reference photographs and lots on site sketches, to use for
the wildlife paintings I will produce for the Smithsonian exhibition and
I am thankful for this opportunity to significantly add to the public
awareness and discussion of conservation issues affecting the Boreal forest.”
The importance of
the Boreal Forest cannot be understated. This is the largest, intact forest
remaining in the world. It is an ecosystem of lakes and trees and moderates
our climate. It’s a source of oxygen; it purifies our water, and
is home to many First Nations communities and to thousands of species
of birds, animals, plants and insects.
For further information
visit www.wreaf.org and www.borealcanada.ca |
