Interlock (Series), 2025, Watercolour, 22 by 30 inches each.
For more than ten years, I have resided on one of the last streets directly bordering a considerably large forest in Vancouver. Although there were plans in the seventies to build additional streets, this proposal never materialized for reasons unknown to me. The only remnant of this decision is a small road extension that now acts as an entrance to the woods. Why was this forest preserved? This street symbolizes a junction between urban development and nature, which spurred this series. Even though this forest has endured, it is not untouched by human influence. Various paths have been carved into the woods, and an excessive amount of trail markers are affixed to more trees than necessary. Surrounding a synthetic metal dam, which was constructed to prevent the river from blocking and to shield the houses below from landslides, are fences entwined with barbed wire. Drainage grates are scattered along the street right beneath the forest edge. Power lines stretch for kilometres and beneath them lies a double-track gravel path strengthened with welded wire mesh that sometimes awkwardly shows through the gravel. All of this, and more, exists within a forest marked by human intrusion. A recurring theme I observed among these interventions is their metallic nature, given that this material endures over time. Despite their stark differences, relationships have developed between these metal structures and the surrounding nature.