Shadow Ecology | Exhibition+ Artist Talk at AX

On Saturday, August 7, at 2:00 p.m., AX will celebrate our newest exhibition with our first in-person event in the gallery since the onset of the pandemic. Shadow Ecology pairs Heather McCaig’s sculpted glass and Emily Phillips’s paintings, creating an enchanting exhibition inspired by our diverse and fragile ecosystems.

Shadow ecology refers to instances when resources are stripped in one area (usually rural) and moved/sold to another area (usually urban). The place where the resources originated feels the negative impact of the loss, or "shadow", while the city or place that is receiving the resources doesn’t see the environmental damage sustained in the process.

Heather McCaig’s glass draws attention to Canada’s disappearing ecosystems, environs that are quickly becoming shadows on our landscapes due to human
disturbance. Her detailed works feature native flora and fauna from each region and bring the country's ecosystems together in one room, allowing the viewer to recognize that, by losing these crucial ecosystems, we are losing ourselves.

Emily Phillips’s paintings help people connect with beloved wild places in the Fundy region. She aims to evoke in her viewers the same attachments she feels to these places, along with an appreciation for their intrinsic value and continued conservation.

Artist Talk

Join us Friday August 20 at 2:00 p.m. for an in person artist talk, featuring artists Heather McCaig, and Emily Phillips. The one-hour in person artist talk will provide more insight into the work of the two artists, their artistic practice, and how they came together to put forward this exhibition that’s inspired by our diverse and fragile ecosystems.

About the Artists

Heather McCaig is a flameworked glass artist from Ontario, who now lives near Sussex, New Brunswick. Heather is entirely self-taught and at the forefront of
flameworked fine art in Atlantic Canada. Through her work, she hopes to portray the fragility of our natural world and inspire a need for its protection. Heather has received a scholarship to the Pittsburgh Glass Center in the United States and support from the New Brunswick Arts Board through their Creation Grant, Career Development Grant Program and an Arts Infrastructure Grant for New and Emerging Artists.

www.heathermccaig.com | Instagram/Facebook: @heathermccaig.glass

Emily Phillips is a landscape painter originally from Baltimore, Maryland. After moving to New Brunswick in 2010, she developed a strong connection to the Bay of Fundy region’s landscapes and built an artistic practice based on this inspiration. Primarily painting in oils, Emily’s training is the result of a decade of self-directed exploration.

www.emilyphillipsart.com | Instagram/Facebook: @emily.phillips.art

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the New Brunswick Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture for their support of these exhibitions.