Observe a landscape never to be seen again on the North Coast at an art exhibit coming to the Museum of Northern B.C.
Prince Rupert-based painter and Terrace-based photographer, Joan Mostad and Talon Gillis are collaborating for the first time as mother and son in a show titled “Ozymandias” opening on April 7.
The theme of the exhibit portrays nature occupying spaces and landscapes that have been manipulated by mankind.
“I’m happy about this show because this type of photography is different from most of my work that people have seen and that I’ve ever shown,” Gillis said.
Nature caught in candid moments. Beauty found in ordinary settings. Both Gillis and Mostad offer a glimpse into the details of how they perceive the natural world around them.
Mostad said that she shares a similar composition style with her son.
“I want to paint why I feel like this when I see this, and it’s amazing how many of Talon’s photos inspire me,” she said.
The theme reflects the 19th Century poem titled “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley who wrote about a traveller stumbling upon fragments of an ancient civilization in a desert.
Mostad’s paintings offer a semi-abstract and surrealist landscape that complement her son’s photography. She has one feature piece that will be revealed at the gallery. The image on the canvas presents a familiar scene to residents — a scene that now only exists in recent memory.
The show will also feature a wall reflecting the family’s three generations of fishermen. The first image of a fishing boat in the Hecate Strait was photographed by Mostad’s father in the 1960s. Forty years later, Gillis captures a fishing scene through his own lens. To complete the triad, Mostad painted a fishing scene in Norway where her grandfather was from.
There will be other pieces of work by Gillis, including his Reclaim the Fisherman series, and Mostad has additional paintings that capture the North Coast.
Both artists will be at the opening reception on Friday, from 7-9 p.m. at the Museum of Northern B.C. and the show will be featured for a couple of months. Stop by the museum to discover the artifact that evoked the exhibit’s theme.