The forest floor is more than just dirt, rocks and insects.
It provides life for trees and plants to take root, and animals.
The scientific term for the forest floor is called O Horizon and it is part of the inspiration behind the Nanaimo Art Gallery’s latest exhibition, Silva Part 1: O Horizon, curated by the gallery’s artistic director, Jesse Birch.
Silva is an art project that explores everything from microcosms of the forest floor to the global forestry industry to the human element that influences and impacts the forest today.
The exhibition is made up of two parts, O Horizon and Booming Grounds and features pieces by Duane Linklater, Gareth Moore, Kika Thorne, Elias Wakan and the late Peter Culley.
The inspiration for Silva stems back from the Black Diamond Dust exhibition that Birch curated last year.
“When I was working on the Black Diamond Dust project I was thinking about how industry and culture shapes our experience in Nanaimo,” Birch said. “I thought, well, if I am going to do something about coal and coal history, I should respond to another big industry, which is forestry.”
Silva Part 1: O Horizon runs at the Nanaimo Art Gallery until Oct. 31. For more information, please visit www.nanaimoartgallery.com or call 250-754-1750.
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