View of Delft (after Vermeer)
Acrylic on canvas, 84 x 168 inches, 2009
$40,000
Michelle Forsyth
"Fairview Cemetery, April 15, 1912", (#18 from the 100 Drawings Project),
2008.
Gouache and sequins on watercolor paper, 28 x 42 inches.
$6,500
This piece documents the flowers on gravesite holding Titanic victim 221,
located in Fairview Cemetery in Halifax, NS. Three Canadian ships were
involved in recovering the victims of the disaster. Of the 328 bodies
recovered, Fairview cemetery holds the largest number of victims from this
disaster. They are buried under unmarked graves identified only by numbers
that refer to the order in which they were found.
"Noronic Disaster, Toronto, Ontario, September 17, 1949", (Drawing #15 from
the 100 Drawings Project), 2008
Watercolor and gouache on Arches CP 156 lb. watercolor paper, 28 x 42
inches.
$6,500
On the morning of September 17, 1949, a small fire was discovered in a
locked linen closet aboard the passenger ship known as the S.S. Noronic.
Once unlocked in an attempt to fight the flames with a single fire
extinguisher, the fire raged out of control. It only took ten minutes for
the fire spread rapidly throughout the interior of the ship because the
woods in the ship were regularly treated with a lemon oil that was highly
flammable. During the incident most passengers were sleeping and roused to a
choking black smoke and packed corridors. Several of them escaped by jumping
into the frigid waters of the Toronto Harbor. Most of the bodies were burned
beyond recognition making identifying them difficult. This piece documents a
weeping willow tree reflected in the water on the pier where the accident
occurred. Nearby there is a plaque commemorating those who perished.
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"Sayward Fire, Campbell River, BC, Canada, July 5, 1938", (#20 from the 100
Drawings Project), 2008
Watercolor, gouache and sequins on watercolor paper, 36 x 54 inches.
$7,200
On July 5, 1938 sparks from a yarding engine operating just north of
Campbell River on Vancouver Island started a fire in some felled trees.
Fifteen thousand firefighters worked to control the blaze yet it raged on
for 30 days, creating a black scar on the earth measuring 75,000 acres. A
massive replanting effort during which almost 800,000 Douglas Fir trees were
planted helped to regenerate the forest. Today the undulating topography of
the Sayward Forest is home to a variety of wildlife including Black-tailed
deer, Roosevelt elk, black bears, cougars and gray wolves, and is largely
covered with Douglas Fir, Western hemlock, Cedar and Sitka spruce. My
drawing documents a mattress left by the side of a lake where the fire
burned.
"November 10, 1979" (#2 from Ostinatos), 2007.
Paper, watercolor, casein, gouache, felt, beads and pins mounted on archival
panel, 26 x 39 inch image, 30 x 43 inch frame.
$6,500
At 11:53 pm on November 10, 1979, a train carrying styrene, toluene,
propane, caustic soda, and chlorine derailed when passing through
Mississauga, Ontario. An inadequately lubricated wheel bearing was the cause
of the accident causing friction that ignited sparks and eventually got so
hot that one pair of wheels fell off. The accident resulted in a huge
explosion and fireball that reached 1,500 meters into the sky. A cloud of
chlorine gas resulting from the accident caused the largest evacuation in
peacetime history until Hurricane Katrina at more than 200,000 people. With
the exception firefighters, who were exposed to the noxious fumes until the
crisis was under control, there were no deaths from the accident. This work
documents some flowering thistles at the site where the accident occurred.
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"May 3, 1887" (#7 from Ostinatos), 2008
156 lb. Arches CP watercolor paper, Color-Aid paper, 90 lb. Arches HP
watercolor paper, Hahnemuhle photo ink jet paper, felt, gouache, sequins,
and thread, 28 x 42 inches.
$6,500
Shortly before 6 pm on May 3, 1887, two explosions rocked the No. 1
Esplanade Mine, located just north of downtown Nanaimo, BC. The resulting
fire and the carbon monoxide it produced resulted in the deaths of 147
miners and one rescuer. Near the entrance to the site is a memorial plaque
listing the names of the miners that died in the accident. Of the dead
listed are 53 Chinese immigrant workers known to the employers only by the
numbers that were assigned to them. This piece depicts a tree with red
berries located near this memorial plaque.
"September 17, 1949" (#4 from Ostinatos), 2008.
Paper, gouache, felt, beads and pins mounted on archival panel, 26 x 39 inch
image, 30 x 43 inch frame.
$6,500
On the morning of September 17, 1949, a small fire was discovered in a
locked linen closet aboard the passenger ship known as the S.S. Noronic.
Once unlocked in an attempt to fight the flames with a single fire
extinguisher, the fire raged out of control. It only took ten minutes for
the fire spread rapidly throughout the interior of the ship because the
woods in the ship were regularly treated with a lemon oil that was highly
flammable. During the incident most passengers were sleeping and roused to a
choking black smoke and packed corridors. Several of them escaped by jumping
into the frigid waters of the Toronto Harbor. Most of the bodies were burned
beyond recognition making identifying them difficult. This piece documents
some day lilies on the pier where the accident occurred. Nearby there is a
plaque commemorating those who perished.
"November 7, 1940 (for Tubby)" (#6 from Ostinatos), 2008.
Color-Aid paper, 90 lb. Arches HP watercolor paper, Fabriano SP watercolor
paper, Hahnemuhle photo ink jet paper, felt, gouache, watercolor, sequins,
beads, dressmakers pins, 144 x 72 inches.
Price on request
