ARTforce Collections

Legacy

I have chosen to paint the knarliest of the old apple trees left in the orchard.  The twisted limbs covered in layers of moss and lichen are rich in texture and colour.  The surface scars suggest a hard life but the broken and bent limbs have their own grace and beauty.  This tree still bears fruit but for how long?

There are many apple varieties in the orchard.  I have painted a "Last Supper" portrait using a variety of apples, which commemorate the decline of the trees as they will certainly succumb to disease.  These heritage apples, these trees, are the farmer's legacy, the evidence of the life he lived.

THE DAUGHTER-IN-LAW'S STORY

In the winter of 1941, the farmer's little house where he lived alone with his books had a chimney fire.  He was an old man and could not attend to the fire himself.  His Daughter-in-law was quick to react and put the fire out after throwing her baby onto his lap.  This was the first time the farmer had held his grandson.

Orchard Ghosts

Many apple trees have died but those that remain connect me to the past.  As I walk through the orchard it is easy to imagine the farmer and his wife walking with me.  They are ghosts who live on the land.  There is an inexplicable pull between people who have shared work and gathered apples in the same orchard.  Today, cottages dot the perimeter of the orchard, framing the history of this farm.  Knowing about these pioneers raises my enjoyment of this property.  By creating this series of paintings, I feel I have been a witness to their lives.

Remembering Springtime

Here sits the old farmer remembering an earlier time when he and his wife first came to Gambier Island full of hopes to build a profitable orchard.  There must have been a huge discrepancy between what they imagined their life might be and what it became.  They lived on this farm with little income, especially through the Depression, trying to remain self-sufficient, keeping some livestock and barnyard animals, but their life was very hard.

SHAPED BY THE PAST

This painting blends two components.  The present day young descendents of original strata property owners are living on the land, raising chickens and growing all their vegetables, preserving their food and generally living a life inspired by the original immigrants.  Midway up the picture are shadows of the immigrant fmily loooking back into time, in awe of the apple trees that they planted over 100 years ago.

To Market

In the early years the farmer would row his boat of heavy, precious apples to Horseshoe Bay to sell.  He would also attend monthly meetings of fellow lawyers at the Hotel Vancouver.  Once the okanagan orchards were sending their apples to the Lower Mainland in the 1920's, the farmer's orchards could not compete.

REFLECTIONS

What was the farmer's wife thinking when she immigrated to Gambier Island as a young woman in 1896?  This painting shows her as a young woman in the looking glass and also as an old woman feeding chickens surrounded by farm animals.  These images on the farm contrast with who she might have been had she stayed living in Norway.  The surface texture of the stone wall in the paining is a collage of clippings from the Eaton's 1901 mail order catalogue which she was able to order from and have delivery by postal boat.  I wonder if the orchard provided her a happy life?

BLOOD BROTHERS

The farmer's brother also immigrated to British Columbia and worked as a seaman.  The brothers were not friendly.  They are pictured with their backs to each other.  The Viking image is collaged with pictures from the farmer's family album.

COMMON GROUND

This painting narartes in part the story of the Orchard property on gambier Island from 1896 to the present.  From left to right we can see the original immigrants and their decendant family. In 1946 the property sold to the couple pictured on the hillock.  When the property sold again, the new oweners divided the land into Strata properties on the 54 acres.  The Strata thrives today and is enjoyed by many families.  the painting represent the land, the apple trees and the deer which are part of the shared experiences of the orchard properties.  The name of some old apple varieties are wtitten over the surface of the painting.

THE FARMER'S ORCHARD

The orchard shown in this painting is idyllic and surreal.  The trees are abundant with fruit.  In reality there were very few moments when life on Gambier Island was perfect for the farmer and his wife.  They had much to endure.  They worked very hard all year in order to live on this land.  The orchard could not fulfill any expectation of a steady income.

DEAD BUT NOT FORGOTTEN

December 8th, 1942.  The old Farmer was buried under the steps of the farmhouse on Gambier Island.  I was told this is an old Norwegian custom.  The water table was high and the coffin kept floating up so the farmer's daughter-in-law told me they weighted the coffin down with rocks.  The painting shows many bottles and rusty metal artefacts that keep surfacing as we dig in the garden today all over the orchard.  I love how the past connects to the present and this painting helps tell the story.