One of many piles of disturbed earth found on the construction sites of Squamish. Each one competing with the Chief in different ways. Each taking less or more but taking nonetheless. Be it disturbing and displacing what was once there without regard if someone once called that area work or home, taking resources from somewhere else to build there, either way - it is constantly relocating and displacing, extracting and expanding… all in the name of consumption, economics and “progress.” But what is progress exactly? For me, progress means creating happy, healthy and sustainable societies. …
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A Birds View
Geese fly free above the clouds, mingled with trees, wind, machinery of the present day. Are they oblivious to the madness happening below their noses? Or do they not care and simply fly past in willful ignorance to escape? Perhaps they know wiser, thereby continuing on with their innate direction and ways of being that have proven to work for their time immemorial. Upon their spring return, the birds fly in silent mode, shocked by the tomfoolery below, the nonsense, the chaos… that serves but one species. The trees that they once soared through and above are no longer, their waterholes …
CBC’s As it Happens interview
Here is an interview that I had regarding the camping bylaw ban in Squamish on CBC's National radio show "As it Happens." May, 2021. Exciting and nerve racking! https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-friday-edition-1.6044261 …
Changing Squamish: Part 4
These images are part of the exhibit, “Nature v Building” which is showing at the Green Olive Cafe for the month of August. They are part of a larger project titled “Changing Squamish'' which documents the gentrification and “high modernist ideology” working itself through Sḵwx̱wú7mesh. By looking beyond the economic benefits of gentrification, this project hopes to draw attention to the forces of our time, opening dialogue on difficult issues and challenging our own understanding of progress and so-called sustainability. These series of images bring to the forefront the environmental damage …
Foyer Gallery Q&A
Here is a copy of a recent Q&A that I did for my show titled "For Sale." If you haven't had a chance to check it out yet, the show is up until Aug 8th at the Foyer Gallery in the Squamish Public Library. Part 2, which is a different theme titled "Nature V Building," will be going up July 27th at the Green Olive Market and Café on Cleveland. The final show will be at the Ledge Cafe in September. Huge thank you to the Squamish Arts Council and their community enhancement grant for making this possible. …
Nexen
Ch’íiw̓es (Nexen), the location of the former Chlor-Alkali Plant and its lingering mercury contamination, is the planned location for the largest development to date. The marketing of Oceanfront is specifically aimed at “professional, creative and knowledge class workers '' with the aim to attract 6500 people (with zero affordable housing). This marketed environment is branded as “an elegant and exciting new residential and retail development that marks the first step in the upcoming Squamish waterfront renaissance.” This planned “beige-colored, monocultures,” is absent of difference or …
Changing Squamish. Part 3.
What follows is an old story that began long before I was born. Theft of land, capitalism, expansion, so-called development and “growth.” It’s all related, it's all the same, continuing itself in different forms and ways. They call this progress. I refuse. I question their motivation, their reasons. I don’t buy into their “modern ideology'' for a second. Their actions force me to question my own sense of belonging. The area is homogenized and sanitized; the familiar ripped down, deemed derelict, an eyesore or not modern enough. People who once made me smile; displaced, gone. Never to return to …
Changing Squamish. Part 2.
One of many development signs found on our streets. This particular one is in Valleycliffe and is found behind the old Cliffside, now Backyard. This accessible green space currently has a little bike track for the kids, a few forts, many birds and critters and a small stream running alongside. It is slated for a 3 story building of approximately 42 units. This photo is a part of my series, “Changing Squamish.” It will be showing at the end of June at various venues around town including: Foyer Gallery in the Squamish Public Library, Green Olive Market and Café and Lucas Teas. Huge thanks …
Changing Squamish. Part 1
I am pleased to announce that my project “Changing Squamish” was a recipient of the annual community grant from the Squamish Art Council. This project is a collection of photographs that document the gentrification and ongoing changes that Sḵwx̱wú7mesh has or is undergoing. Having been around long enough to remember Squamish as a quiet town where loggers outnumbered the recreationalist and Dairy Queen was the to go place on the main drag, in the last decade specifically, the changes began. At a rate faster than anyone likely expected, Squamish morphed from a quiet, affordable town, to one of …
Understanding the suckiness behind Squamish Camping bylaw
Homeless and nomadic people have historically been labelled with a social identity that has restricted their access to land and rights to live as free and equal citizens. According to Pivot Legal, by the 1700s, sleeping anywhere but in designated housing was considered a crime and offenders were penalized through punitive bylaws or by targeting behavioural offences. At the heart of the issue is land access, economic factors, and processes of othering. This ideology of exclusion is reflected in Squamish’s new camping bylaw which is branded as part of the “tourism management scheme.” While this …
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The Surveilled Life of a Squamish Vehicle Resident
Hidden. That's how I must live these days. Or as one city councillor calls it, “flying under the radar”. My need for discretion lies in my choice of home: A beige minivan called ‘Incognito’. It is like any other van until you peer into the windows. Then all is revealed - a bed, stove, shelves full of clothes and food… My vehicle is my home on wheels which essentially means I rely on public lands. To avoid confrontation, a possible ticket, or risk adding myself to the District's data of illegal campers, I must escape the watchful eyes of concerned citizens and bylaw. Like most towns these …
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Montreal Man
You looked upon arrival. Towards me, sitting quietly. Nervously feeding baby with one hand, dreaming with the other. You wore a scarf.Our tables facing each other. Two empty tables between us. Space filling with imaginations. Eyes wandering towards me. Towards you. Your scarf wrapped just so. Around this neck meant for other things. Is he playing with me, this man whom I see? No such man sees the invisible one, alone with child. Unbearable this dream. Teasing. Feeding the desire, I look back. It’s real. Unimagined. They rise to leave. All of them. You too. While paying your eyes …
Arrival
What a surprise to see your face. as I come around the corner. A daydream stumbled. Awoken now. As if out of slumber. On the brown bench you sat. Black jacket draped just so, over huddling knees. The cold not allowed to creep in. Sitting patiently, as if waiting for a bus. but there was no bus to greet you. Only me. Who finally showed up. …
You
Twin souls in unison, weaving in and out of a crowded field. Unknown to each other. led by an invisible pulling; walking out of curiosity. Blind to the leash held by the hands of god. quietly leading. now urgently. Unknowingly, towards the other. …
souls unite
There was a warmth between us that felt eternal. Twisting around and within, it spread with a soft deliciousness that filled all our cracks and holes. Our spirits shaped themselves into their natural existence of no beginning or end. The comfort of our own skins allowed our bodies to move with grace and ease around the other, like a rose vine wrapping itself around its anchor. Seizing without choking; letting go without needing. Our breath inhaled in patterns of tightening and loosening, quickening, then slowing down. Never gasping, nor trying. Having spent lifetimes apart, we understood the …
Forties
For my mother. they say we never really know how soon it actually will be yet, maybe in a weird way we do. It is just so damn painful, we refuse to look. “Human life begins on the far side of despair.” Jean-Paul Sartre When the end of February approaches, a part of me freezes. This has happened every year for as long as I can remember. Like clockwork, analysis starts. As March turns the corner, this deepens and morphs into what perhaps can be only called a lighted version of despair. As the end of March closes in, another year of my existence on this planet will …
Watchman
To live a night within these dark cold walls... night watch, day watch, guardian of the land. From the warning tower above, the rhythmic arrival of light casts itself into view. Sea birds cry loudly, screeching their songs in the distance. The strong smell of salt fills your lungs. Through square concrete windows, door wide open, the wind pays a visit. Every sense now awakened. Touching every corner, bitter cold drafts swirl on the floor. Never-ending. The roar of the ocean stirs the deep silence. Whitecaps visible under the light of the moon. The wind and the ocean conspire as one. …
Open Letter to the District of Squamish and Council
Dear council members, My name is Thomasina Pidgeon. I have been a Squamish resident for some 20 years. Myself and other concerned Squamish residents have initiated the petition to have the bylaw amended. If you have not yet seen or read the petition in its entirety, I have listed the many reasons for opposition below. As of right now, we have close to 2500 signatures. Here is the LINK. Please have a read of the many thoughtful comments from residents, local business owners, and visitors alike. I will print and present these to council. During this campaign i have been called freeloader, …
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Hey Climbers!
I live in a van and have for over 20 years. But who cares right? Well! Some do! The District of Squamish is working on a by-law that will outlaw sleeping in your tent, vehicle or RV for all people, within the entire district (the one exempt area is 20 min from town, requires 4x4 and lacks toilets). WHY? Due to the rising number of complaints regarding irresponsible wild campers, to those uncomfortable with people who sleep in vehicles or tents, the District considers wild camping 'an environmental and social hazard.’ However, many residents live in vehicles due to socio-economic factors, …
The Otter and the Whale
From the slough came webbed feet; paddling towards. Visiting us, the boat dwellers, sailors, and fisherman. Staring longingly he did; with pleading and depth. Large, brown eyes, conveying more than hi. Perhaps a message from the world underneath. As when the whales arrived... The stars in their eyes, dancing and bellowing. ‘We are back. Those that stand in admiration, hear and understand. Speak for us.’ A timely visit… Many humans flocked to pay tribute, to witness them so close. But when it came time to stand, few spoke. Even fewer acted. A case of willful blindness? The very …