Elemental

ARTIST’S STATEMENT “Practicing within the tradition of landscape painting, I am aware that early renditions of Alberta reflected a 19th century European style. Later Illingworth Kerr introduced his understanding of modernist colour theory to site-specific observation. Although I appreciate these historical approaches, I am interested in moving away from the recreation of the landscape as a window into “reality” or an exploration of a two-dimensional surface.”

Elemental is a series of 24 panels referring to the original ancient Greeks’ belief that there were 4 elements – earth, fire, air, water. Artist Lynn Malin writes: “One can understand why the Greeks thought that these were the original elements as they are the source of all life on earth. As we now know, there is a periodic table that boasts many elements that make up the complex compounds and substances that exist in the world. Earth, water, fire, and air are not elements but conglomerations of many elements. We have expanded our knowledge but we still fail as stewards of the 4 originals. Elemental highlights how knowledge has expanded. Lessons about new scientific theories, how better to use our resources and guard against pollution, and recycling when possible, are suggested in this installation.” The abstract images refer to the four original elements in a colourful and visually interesting way. The arrangement of the images in grid format references the modern periodic table, and maps the history of human imprint on the original elements. The play of shadow and light on the panels over the course of a day further animates the piece.