Urban planning provides inspiration for artistic exploration in a new exhibition at Deer Lake Gallery.
A new exhibition by Juan Contreras, ... And We Call It Home, opens this week at the Burnaby Arts Council's gallery. An opening reception is set for this Thursday, July 21 from 6 to 9 p.m.
Contreras, a Columbian-born Canadian painter, works for a developer in Vancouver and so comes into regular contact with representations of the city in the form of development plans and diagrams.
"I am fascinated with aerial photography, CAD drawings, vehicular circulation maps, parking plans and site plans outlining the location of current, past and future developments," he says in an artist's statement. "I am amazed that all of these diagrams and the processes that they represent eventually give people great homes to live in, neighbourhoods that promote a better quality of life, and green spaces."
Contreras, as an artist, is interested in translating those "utilitarian artefacts" of the urban development process into an artistic exploration of forms, colours and symbols.
He takes the development plans and site plans and further explores the forms he sees in them, using colours and forms that reflect his own preferences.
"My reshaping is also guided by personal experience with urban centres, a sense of history and a concern over disappearing forests and arable lands," he says.
It also highlights the similarities between cities' aerial maps and aboriginal motifs.
To check out Contreras's work, stop by the gallery at 6584 Deer Lake Ave.
... And We Call It Home runs until Aug. 13.
For more about the exhibition, check out www.burnabyartscouncil.org or call 604-298-7322.
