THE LOG JUMBLE
Anyone who walks the Pacific shores of the west coast of Canada knows what a log jumble is. Like some huge game of Pick-Up-Sticks, the flotsam and jetsam distributed on the shoreline can be almost mesmerizing in its random confusion. In fact, for those who brave picking their way across, over and under that crazy collection, one never knows what may be hidden in the twisted tangle.
So too, the variety of rare and distant woods found in this log sort of serendipity can be amazing. When I lived in Tofino, particularly after a storm, I’d often see folks out among the logs with chainsaws. Many of those were people who work creatively with wood. They’d be searching the latest offering provided by the receding tide for exotic varieties of wood from far away. The log jumbles can be a treasure trove of valuable woods to the furniture maker or carver.
As I walked the shores of Snickett Park in nearby Sechelt one cold, clear and windy spring day in 2023, a painting came into focus. And as I studied the compelling composition, I realized it was that colourful log jumble that provided the energy and interest to my artist’s eye. The Salish Sea is most generous in its offerings to the shores of the Sunshine Coast. With every storm and high tide, we are gifted with a never-ending and ever-changing supply of wood. Some of that wood may even come from hundreds of miles up the Fraser River. Indeed, only last winter a wooden sign was found on our beaches. It had come all the way from Spences Bridge.
I hadn’t been able to find a painting, or even felt like painting, for about 3 months. But this confusion of logs discarded by the ocean waters sparked the artist’s energy within. That day my painter’s block was released. Released by THE LOG JUMBLE.
