The Imperfecta Art & Design Gallery is pleased to present Resident, a solo exhibition featuring new artworks by Oregon City-based artist Quire (Leah Hugon).
On view from December 7 to December 28, the show features new original paintings that explore the relationship between past and present history in the Pacific NorthWest.
After spending the last three years researching historic sights in the Pacific NorthWest, with an emphasis on the land surrounding Oregon City, the artist recreated landscape paintings by imagining what the land looked like before it was stolen and settled. On top of such imagined landscapes, Quire then added plexiglass layers, etched with digital line drawings that depict historic structures currently on the same land.
The series started when Quire became curious about the land in her own historic neighborhood in Oregon City. As she shares: “It was very difficult to find information prior to European settlers… I partnered with local museums, a wildlife biologist, and individuals from local tribal communities, read many textbooks and learned to forage wild food to gain a sense of how the land was cared for and what the habitat may have been.” The combination of Quire’s watercolor landscapes and digital etchings echoes the relationship of our shared history and the path or reconciliation moving forward. By juxtaposing how the land might have been with how it is today, the artist challenges viewers to reflect on how past and present entwine, coexist, and are embedded in our everyday surroundings.
Opening Reception: December 7 from 5 to 7pm at imperfecta (117 6th street, Oregon City)
