Loree Manson, Fledgling Crows, 2007, acrylic on canvas.
Loree Manson: Birds of Burnaby Mountain
March 3 – 20, 2008
Teck Gallery
Today's news constantly reminds us about threats to the environment, but rarely mentions that the expanding human population and the preservation of habitat are respectively the main problem and the key solution to saving the planet. Loree Manson's suite of paintings The Birds of Burnaby Mountain is a beautifully painted reminder of the effects of humanity's expansion as well as of the fragility of habitat. With this show, Manson's birds have “migrated” from the Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area into the concrete forest of signs that is downtown Vancouver.
During her research for this project, Manson was occasionally close to making a painting of a bird that is supposed to be resident on the Mountain, such as the Spotted Owl, only to discover that it is locally extinct. She may have taken the short list of the most common birds living on the Mountain as the basis for the paintings, but her birds look anything but common. The birds in Manson's paintings are somewhat awkward and off-kilter, as if they were nervous about what is going on around them.
Loree Manson is originally from Edmonton and is currently a Vancouver-based artist and teacher, whose studio practice focuses mainly on painting. She graduated from the Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design in 1980.
Curated by Bill Jeffries.
Events
Opening Reception
Monday, March 3, 2008, 6–8pm