The wilderness has no borders. My work is inspired from the north as the subject matter and I try to expose the viewer to see the inherent beauty within the wilderness. An understanding of this helps to generate a stronger sense of community, foster forest stewardship and create an overall sense of belonging. Many people are not aware of the forest in their own backyard and through my images I hope to demonstrate how the Boreal links us globally and from coast to coast. My collection called Portraits From The Boreal represents snapshots of this connection as they portray the beauty of the Boreal and stimulate discussion on how man and forest cohabit.
I have photographed Canada’s Boreal from Alaska to Finland. It is from these images that I create my paintings.
What you should know:
Why is it important?
- Boreal forest is controlling global climate change
- More than 208 billion tonnes of carbon are stored in the Canadian Boreal’s trees, soils, water
- The global Boreal is the largest terrestrial carbon “bank account” on the planet
- 80% of the world’s fresh water is stored in Canada’s Boreal, it acts a a filter to clean the water
Threats
The greatest threat to Canada’s Boreal is industrial development and its effects, such as climate change. These include:
- Logging
- Mining
- Oil and gas industry
What can you do?
- Educate yourself and others on the threats to the Boreal
- Demand ethical logging and mining in the Boreal from government
- Use wood logged in accordance to renewable logging practices
- Encourage the development of clean energy
- Recycle & reduce
Powerful and meaningful work.
Very nice to have met you Kelly at the Tom Thompson Gallery.Very good work.
Wow, some great photos. That must have been a great experience and trip. I would like to know more about it so we’ll have to talk some more about it sometime!