Processes of Remediation at Campbell River Art Gallery
I worked with a local nursery, Satinflower Nurseries, to develop a seed mix of native plant seeds: yarrow, field chickweed, fireweed, self-heal, and canada goldenrod. Gallery visitors are invited to take a seed packet (ed. of 300) and plant it as a way to consider local acts of environmental care and repair and their relationship with the land and plants.
The seed packets feature a custom black envelope and stamped design of a canary awaiting resuscitation. They are displayed on a core storage shelf alongside cores salvaged at the site of the long-abandoned Greenway Mine Complex in Alberta. The shelf was labelled "GM" for Grassy Mountain, which inspired several artworks. The plants in the seed mix are the same plants as those seen in the video Toil and Trouble. In the exhibition, viewers also see a canary resuscitation cage used in coal mines to revive miner's canaries on loan from the Royal Alberta Museum.