HAIDA GWAII

Dungeness Crab with Spawning Salmon and Blue Heron Claws. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour + Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

Wild Chinook Salmon whose bottom jaw becomes that of a bold and beautiful eagle. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

Eagle in the river with forest wings, inspired by a wild day at the Jalun River in Haida Gwaii.

Watercolour and Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

Watercolour and Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

This piece life at the Jalun River in Haida Gwaii, a remote and special place…a wild Eden, a glimpse into what the world once was. My most cherished place on earth.

I had packed my sketch book and put on a pair of waders and gumboots and set out on an adventure to this magical place with my partner and two dear friends. They all packed their fly fishing rods…and my equivalent was my sketch book and paint brushes. We spent all day hiking through ancient forests and walking up this rushing river of 10,000 years. At one point I stood in the middle of the river, chest deep with my sketch book out, collecting little bits of foliage that were drifting down the river and pressing it in my book. The others were traversing the river with their fishing rods…all of us in a trance, in a form of deep meditation….it was magical.

With each careful step I took deeper into the river, I imagined the salmon that might be coming home to the Jalun River later that year to provide more life to the ancient cedar, the eagles, bears and to our coast as we know it. I felt so small…and so incredibly grateful to be in the presence of it all.

Jalun River Coming home, paints the image of a spawning sockeye salmon swimming up a river to its final resting place. If you look closely at this art piece you will see the two pieces of litterfall from the Jalun River on that special day…one piece woven into the tail of the sockeye, the other placed within the gills. Perhaps the very nutrients that nourished that piece of forest floor were that of the salmon. The moss green colours of the foliage matched those of a spawning salmon….and the rest came so effortlessly. - If you shift your perspective ever so slightly…the pectoral fin becomes a map of Vancouver Island and the image transforms into a topographic map of the outline of British Columbia. Everything is interconnected.

Humpback whale that is also the ocean…inspired by the beautiful shells in Haida Gwaii. Can you spot the mussel shell? Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

An art piece that tells the story of the intimate relationship between chinook salmon and orca whales. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Orca Whale transforming into rock formation landscape

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 12” x 16”

Watercolour + Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 14” x 20”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 12” x 16”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 12” x 16”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Watercolour + Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

An orca created from mostly small fragments of pressed seaweed from Haida Gwaii. This piece brings me back to an incredible day spent trekking along remote shoreline with my partner Jeremy. Just him and I walking along the beach in flow with the ocean, trees and wildlife. Haida Gwaii landscape is harsh but gentle, hauntingly quiet yet flourishing with life. This piece is capable of transporting me back to this day, of feeling so incredibly connected and present. I look at this Pacific Ocean Orca then close my eyes and it all comes flooding back. I encourage you to close your eyes as well and imagine the sounds and smell of the ocean, the feeling of the wind against your face and the rain falling heavy on your shoulders. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 12” x 16”

Watercolour + Foliage on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper, inspired by Chinook salmon

Perhaps my most cherished pieces, Land Meets the Sea is a whimsical story that connects the forest floor with the ocean. An evolution from the Humpback Arbutus, my intention was to create a similar concept that related more closely to my experiences in Haida Gwaii. The forest…a sea of green, a surge of new energy, a soft landing, a safe and wild place that holds my soul. I wanted to reflect how this place makes me feel. I encourage you to close your eyes, to breathe deeply and imagine that you are sitting in the forest…listen to the sounds, feel the energy, breathe in the air. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

Inspired by beautiful chinook salmon, with a Haida Gwaii map for a tail. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 10” x 14”

Eagle Coastline, An eagle wing at first glance, this piece continues to evolves as you deepen your gaze. As you change your perspective ever so slightly you discover that the eagle wing is also the outline of the British Columbia Coastline. I remember feeling inspired and energized after I had made the connection between the eagle wing and topographic coastline- I wanted to share it with anyone and everyone who would look and listen! This had never happened in my process before and perhaps in its purest form, this piece is a true example of that feeling I hope to inspire… a moment of pure connection, curiosity and excitement! Our coastal home is so incredibly special, and I wholeheartedly believe that in order to care deeply we have to feel a connection. I hope this piece inspires you the way that it inspired me. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Watercolour Paper | 7” x 10”

Cedar and Hummingbird intertwined. Everything is interconnected.

Watercolour on Archival Quality Paper | 9” x 12”

La Mariposa is a story about connecting the human spirit with our coastal ecosystems. Perhaps even deeper it is about connecting my soul to my body, to the ecosystem that exits within me and extends into the wild. At the time I created this piece, I was in the middle of reading Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, a novel that is devoted to igniting the wild and natural creature, the powerful and intuitive force that exists in all women. With this inspiring my soul, La Mariposa was created in Haida Gwaii after a magical day spent trekking up and down an ancient river of 10,000 years. This river- untouched, pure, prehistoric and as wild as I had seen or felt…inspired the image of the butterfly. It was here that La Mariposa was born. I collected a small piece of litterfall from this day and later incorporated it into the art piece as the antenna of the butterfly. In this art, my soul feels completely connected to my body and to the earth and I hope that this resonates with you. Everything is interconnected.

Small watercolour on Archival Paper

A small sketch by the mouth of a remote river in Haida Gwaii.

Watercolour and seaweed on Cotton paper

Watercolour and Seaweed on Archival quality paper | 6” x 6”

Pink Salmon came to life when I picked up a vibrant piece of seaweed on the shores of Haida Gwaii…and at the time it was this beautiful and whimsical shade of pink, resembling the shape of a salmon tail. I love this piece because it is a pure feeling, an experience, a voyage into the wild. The piece is imperfect, raw and a true manifestation of the way that I feel when I am outside by the sea shore surrounded by all of the elements. The piece is worn, the seaweed incorporated might not last forever…but the feeling that this piece brings to me will remain. I encourage you to head towards the sea, to paint or write the way that you feel. To connect with the place, to listen, to be present, to care. Pink Salmon will always be this reminder to me, and I hope for you as well.