Vancouver Island's ancient rainforests are under threat. This artist is making them into magic
In her new massive IMAX film, Kelly Richardson pays homage to ancient trees — and imagines a better future
Recently, it was announced that 109 hectares of old-growth rainforest will be auctioned off in the same area in which video installation artist Kelly Richardson filmed her latest work, Embers and the Giants. It's threatening news to Richardson, who is already so aware that gigantic trees like the ones in these woods are at risk of being destroyed.
Richardson, whose large-scale cinematic videos imagine sci-fi landscapes and fantastical worlds, sees science fiction as a vehicle for change — and that's why she incorporates it into her works. She explains: "What science fiction does brilliantly is it allows us to experience what life might be like. And so I use it to suggest potential futures, should we continue down our current trajectory of planetary pillaging and consumption."
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Richardson's work may prompt you to consider how we relate to nature as a species and to consider what the future may look like if we don't choose a different path. In this video made by filmmaker Lisa Wu, you'll travel to the forest with Richardson and get to see her at work making the landscape come alive in Embers and the Giants. The film was commissioned to participate in the XL Outer Worlds project celebrating the 50th anniversary of IMAX.
Embers and the Giants will be at the Toronto Biennial of Art in Fall 2019, and then it's travelling both across Canada and internationally. You can find out more about Kelly Richardson and her work here.
Stream CBC Arts: Exhibitionists or catch it on CBC Television Friday nights at 11:30pm (12am NT) and Sundays at 3:30pm (4pm NT). Watch more videos here.
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