Client: University of British Columbia

Overview

This monumental Shadow silhouette of the Douglas fir across the expanse of University Commons Plaza is a result of the absence of those trees on the campus of UBC today.

This contemporary mosaic is pixilated through the use of three shades of 24,000 grey paving stones. The Shadow size of 100 x 25 meters (328 x 82 feet) engages pedestrians through its varied texture and tone underfoot, offering horizontal abstract immersive perspectives.

The Shadow also celebrates the idea of the ground. The work changes with the weather and the light. When it rains, the piece is darker and more dramatic and solitary; in the bright sun, it is paler, sharing the ground with other shadows. It is never the same from one day to the next. The Shadow is almost like a mosaic earthwork, most legible from the sky above, inviting the visitor to move to higher ground to perceive the immense totality of the image.

Losing touch with the materiality that created it, we are compelled to give it the meanings of that which we see instead of acknowledging the erasing or denial that caused it to disappear.

Growing on the eternal territory of learning, for the Musqueam people and the University, each tree carries a unique testimony of a common history and surroundings.

Goals

The Shadow invites to consider the scale of the trees that once existed on this site as well as the vast change that has taken place in a relatively short period of time. It establishes a dialogue between presence and absence, culture and nature, past and potential future, and through its humble invitation to a reconciliation with nature, the work meets crucial matters of our world today.

For me the reality of art in public space is inherently political. It is about reflecting on the collective and individual images of history. It proposes to examine what the new histories are and what should be telescoped into public space in order to broaden the field of expression. The Shadow invites to consider the scale of the trees that once existed on this site as well as the vast change that has taken place in a relatively short period of time. Over time The Shadow will decay, polished by the thousands of feet treading over it, by the gum and detritus that will eventually lend it its patina. The Shadow resists and surrenders all at once.

This open direct commission inspired the artist to engage with the history of the trees, the first community presence on the ground of the campus. Touched by their absence, she created a giant shadowy portrait of one of them.