AFFECTING WILD TERRITORY
SARAH RONALD

Affecting Wild Territory is an exhibition by Port Coquitlam-based artist Sarah Ronald, considering the ways in which we perceive animals, and how our perceptions impact wildlife in the real world.

For a number of years, Ronald's focus has been on the kinds of wild animals that we encounter in suburban settings, believing that our regard towards everyday wildlife echoes how we define ourselves within the world and how we relate to the unfamiliar.  She has moved towards incorporating more ephemeral elements in her art practice, acknowledging that beyond black and white conservation matters and traditionally defined art forms, there exists an intuitive world more akin with how wild animals live.

​Affecting Wild Territory tells the story of Ronald’s personal encounters with wild animals that have travelled through her own yard and space, both in person and through her nighttime backyard security cameras that feed livestreams into her living room.  Concepts of animal totems/symbolism and animal dreams/messengers are explored during the in-between hours in which animals feel secure enough to travel as naturally as they can, ironically even as they are monitored.  Many of the works are drawn by hand with raw materials, a direct link to primitive cave dwellers, calling back to the time when the separation of humans from animals had only just begun.

Exhibition: October 1-November 6
Opening Reception (at the gallery): Friday, October 1, 7pm
Philosopher's Cafe (online): Thursday, October 14, 7:30pm RSVP
Outdoor Pop-Up Animation Projection Encounter: begins Saturday, October 2, 7:30pm outside the gallery.  Follow @fortgallery and @SarahRonaldArtist on Instagram for announcements on the locations to follow. 

Artist website: Sarah Ronald
October 1 -
​November 6

​Important Dates
October 1
Opening Reception
October 2
Encounter Pop-Up Animation
October 14
Philosopher's Cafe RSVP