Watershed

Stephen Andrews, Marlene Creates, Francisco De la Barra, Michel Dumont, André Ethier, Gary Evans, FASTWÜRMS, Ron Giii, Sadko Hadzihasanovic, Jay Isaac, Zachari Logan, Olia Mishchenko, Jeanne Randolph, Mélanie Rocan, Su Rynard, Carol Wainio, Robert Wiens, Natalie Wood

group exhibition
September 6 - October 5, 2024

Mural Study 12, Mural for a Building Lobby

The High Tide as it acts upon an X, England 1980, from the series Paper, Stones and Water (1979-1985)

We all must have some ballast in our lives

Watershed
installation view , 2024
Photos by LF Documentation unless otherwise noted.

We all live on a watershed even if it's off a downspout or a tent flap. Watersheds are our connection to the ecosystem. -- Robert Wiens, May 2024

Stephen Andrews

Marlene Creates

Francisco De la Barra

Michel Dumont

André Ethier

Gary Evans

FASTWÜRMS

Ron Giii

Sadko Hadzihasanovic

Jay Isaac

Zachari Logan

Olia Mishchenko

Pejvak

Jeanne Randolph

Mélanie Rocan

Su Rynard

Carol Wainio

Robert Wiens

Natalie Wood

Paul Petro Contemporary Art is pleased to present the group exhibition Watershed.

This summer has seen a time of flash flooding in many parts of the world, including in Toronto where thunderstorm bursts unexpectedly flooded roads and basements. It was also the year that the mayor of Paris, in preparation for the summer Olympics, demonstrated to the world the somewhat-remediated water health of the river Seine by taking a swim.

Installed this summer in Ottawa at the National Gallery of Canada, in a permanent collection exhibition attuned to the environment, are photo-based works, a video and a memory map drawing by Marlene Creates and a pen and ink drawing, Ravine World (2014), by Olia Mishchenko. Comprised of eight sheets at 22 x 30 inches each, this continuous drawing maps a Lake Ontario shoreline fragment over its 240-inch length. I have always thought of this work as a primordial meeting place of land and water, enacted upon over time by humans at all ages, at play and at work, and by the effects of erosion and maintenance, and urban development.

The shoreline presents as a place of constant re-enactment. Rich in bio-diversity at its best, this junction of water and vegetation is known as the riparian zone, and functions as a barometer of lake health, supporting a vast array of animal, insect, bird, aquatic and, by extension, human life. Watershed looks at these relationships and considers bio-diversity in the balance of climate change.

-- Paul Petro, August 2024 (longer text forthcoming)

Watershed

Stephen Andrews, Marlene Creates, Francisco De la Barra, Michel Dumont, André Ethier, Gary Evans, FASTWÜRMS, Ron Giii, Sadko Hadzihasanovic, Jay Isaac, Zachari Logan, Olia Mishchenko, Jeanne Randolph, Mélanie Rocan, Su Rynard, Carol Wainio, Robert Wiens, Natalie Wood

group exhibitionSeptember 6 - October 5, 2024

group exhibition
September 6 - October 5, 2024