Water Forms in Light and Metal

Written by Claudia and Jen MacIntyre

Water is the most essential element for life on our planet.

This exhibit represents a fluid interplay between the creative works of two artists, inspired by their interest in nature. Using their respective mediums (silver and photography), these artists reflect on the fascinating qualities of water through their creative processes. Water Forms in Light and Metal considers our interconnection with this ordinary, yet profound, element and its relevance for all life.

In this show, Jen MacIntyre’s images move through the various states and forms of water that cycle through our world, from the microcosmic to the monumental. With the acknowledged impacts of climate change upon our delicate planet, the lens reveals the preciousness of ice crystals, city snow drifts, bodies of water, cloud formations, a tree in springtime thaw, and a desert succulent keen to survive. The photographs can reflect deep space, or unveil a prismatic, sacred, inner life. The defining element of our planet, water's existence sustains our own. It functions as a metaphor for both impermanence and life itself.

Claudia Gómez’s creative work is shaped by her interest in natural science, art, and ecology. For this project, she looked at traditional descriptions of water molecules in chemistry, as well as descriptions of water waves in physics, and conventional ways of drawing these concepts. Here, she also played with Jen’s images to create textures and forms that will help build bridges between photography and metal. Fundamental to Claudia’s aesthetic position is her concession to the situation of water on our planet; the appalling fact that it is traded on the stock market. Claudia advocates viewing water, and even land, as fundamental communal good.

Galerie Espace, September 29th to October 4th

4844, Boulevard Saint-Laurent

Montréal, Québec H2T 1R5