July 2 – July 27, 1987

McPherson Library Gallery

Work that details the destruction, power and beauty of the environment of the coastal rainforests of British Columbia, focusing on environmental protection.

To create and maintain a balance with the natural environment is one of Man’s greatest challenges of today. Nowhere on earth is this more evident than in the coastal rainforests of British Columbia; a region of extremes. The raw ancient beauty of an old growth forest inhabited by animals of unequalled beauty., contrasted by the rapidly increasing defoliation of those same forests. The logging industry of the province suffers from the frontier-like attitude of the “never ending forest”. A century ago, when needs and technology were limited, the never ending forest may have actually existed; however, with the present technology and greed, the rate of renewal is outstripped.

This misuse of the land is perpetuated by a government that refuses to deal with the issues and protect not only the unique natural and cultural regions such as South Moresby, but its own future, by allowing the resource volume to be so drastically depleted before initiating a reasonable reforestation programme. My work deals with not only the destruction, but the power and beauty of the environment so worth of protection.

– Jim Elwood