Salmon, of blue purple dropcloth, on black, facing right Print

Salmon Please meet the Coho Salmon. This creature has been both economically and historically important to Canada. Also knows as the Silver Salmon, this is one of five Pacific salmon species, which have a unique lifestyle, starting out and returning to fresh water, but living much of their lives in salt water. Their appearance changes with their location, both in colour and in shape. Found throughout the Pacific, in Japan and Russia as well as Canada, this creature is popular as sport and as subsistance. As a part of the Animal Silhouette series, the salmon represents the west coast as well as the orca or elk, and while you don't spot them while motorcycling on Vancouver Island, you see evidence of their impact throughout the coastal communities of the west coast. The legacy of salmon fishing has impacted orca populations, indigenous people and communities, as well as the modern sport and commercial fishing industries. These digital images of coho salmon are created by superimposing two layers of paper, with a salmon silhouette shape cut out of it, and laid over a recycled map or a dropcloth background on the flatbed of my scanner. The map series uses old recycled paper maps, which motorcyclists are using less and less in these days of gps and digital devices, so much more compact than a cumbersome paper map, so I've been collecting old maps from riding friends to include in this series. The dropcloth backgrounds are created from the paper I use to cover my work surface when I paint, they collect the drips, smears and splatters from my artwork, and marks from things set upon the surface of my table. The inclusion of bubble wrap monoprints is intentional, meant as a reminder of the dangers of plastic waste in the oceans. The resulting scanned images show positive and negative space versions of each creature in the animal silhouette series, in some cases in both black and white, and facing in different directions. The Coho Salmon is a late addition the animal silhouette series, since I don't encounter fish in my day to day dry land existence, but the economic importance of this creature, as well as the sentimental connection with my west coast home brought it to mind, and encouragement from my marine biology professor cousin helped bring this creature to life in this series. Please join me in welcoming the salmon to the animal silhouette series.