TERRITORY:Obtrusion
SARAH RONALD & MOLLY GRAY
In this two-person exhibition, artists Sarah Ronald and Molly Gray explore the boundaries of human impact on wild animals and their fragile habitats.
MAY 5 - 23, 2022
ARTist pARTy:
Saturday, May 7th, 2022 from 6-8pm
Bar & Refreshments with DJ Yeshe
Snug Cove on Bowen Island
Gallery Hours:
Gallery Hours: Open daily 11 - 5 pm (Closed Tuesdays & Wednesdays)
Facebook Event: HERE
Sarah Ronald: Sarah Ronald is a Canadian artist living in Port Coquitlam BC.
A Summerland British Columbia native, Ronald’s diverse upbringing in the rural Okanagan shaped her future as a conservation-minded animal artist and aspiring creative writer. After graduating from the Okanagan University College with her BFA, Ronald relocated to the lower mainland of BC, eventually settling in Port Coquitlam where she now creates out of her home studio.
In 2020 Ronald started creating hand-drawn animation (see ‘Encounter’ on her website) and this year she will begin exploring the process of projecting her wild animal animations in outdoor spaces and on buildings as part of her conservation interests and future project building. Ronald has recently started to re-incorporate installation art into her practice and sees installation and projected animation work becoming a significant part of her artistic focus in the years to come.
Artist Statement
My artwork comes from a place of deep evaluation and critique of the Anthropocene, looking at how human behaviour affects the natural world. My main subject is wild animals, in part because animals hold powerful cultural storytelling capacities (and we are a story-loving species). But I also portray wild animals as a means to relay real-world concerns and issues around conservation and habitat loss, issues that have significant and broad implications for all life on this planet… issues that can no longer be dismissed as someone else’s fight.
The collection of work included in this exhibition at Hearth Gallery stems from my TERRITORY and Landspeaker drawing series. These two bodies of work are inspired by the visual language of nighttime trail camera ‘captures’ of wildlife: the blurred and dissipated forms, unnatural lighting, heightened contrast, muffled darkness, and foreign landscapes speak of an existence that is evacuated, exposed, incomplete, vulnerable and highly sensory. Ironically, this visual language only exists because humans have inserted themselves into spaces where wild animals feel autonomy and freedom to safely live without human interference.
The term Landspeaker is an acknowledgement that animals are living extensions of the planet: they physically read, respond, and (to a limited extent) adapt to their changing environments. They are also deeply connected to the energy of the space around them - an unseen yet invaluable component of living in harmony with the land. In this way encountering a wild animal should be a humbling and enlightening experience, for wild animals offer a reminder of a vital sensory language that human beings, as a single species, forgot long ago when we started considering ourselves as witnesses of the natural world, rather than part of it.
Learn more: sarahronald.com
Molly Gray:
Molly Gray is a West Coast Canadian artist who lives and works outside of Fort Langley, B.C. Canada on the unceded territory of Kwantlen First Nation. Growing up surrounded by agricultural farmland, Gray’s work is heavily influenced by animals and nature. She enjoys working with just about any medium she can get her hands on, viewing her practice as a constant evolution of exploration and curiosity. Gray creates both functional and aesthetic work under the name Goat & Pebble Co. (@goatandpebbleco).
Gray completed a Bachelor of Arts degree with honours in Fine Art from Bishop’s University in Quebec, Canada (2009), and holds a certificate with distinction from British Columbia Institute of Technology in New Media Design (2011). Following her formal education, she began honing her style and technique through years of independent trial and error, drawing inspiration from the impressionist and post-impressionist eras.
Artist Statement:
My work is often inspired by fauna of the Pacific Northwest. In Territory: Obtrusive, my life-size renderings of birds of prey, which are created with the slow process of relief carving and printing, invite viewers to contemplate their perception of space and time, and how that affects wild animals’ habitats.
Rooted in the belief that art can be both functional and aesthetic, my art explores a range of mediums from relief printing on paper and textiles, digital design, as well as painting with acrylic, watercolour and ink. I am always looking to learn new mediums and skills.
Throughout my life, I have found that the process of creating and working with my hands has helped to alleviate personal obstacles of depression and anxiety while simultaneously bringing me tremendous purpose and satisfaction. This focus on mental health can be found in the curious nature of my work, with my ultimate goal being: to create artwork that evokes personal reflections, wonder and contentment.
Learn More: goatandpebble.com