States of Matter

Developed in collaboration with the Reach Museum and Art Gallery in Abbotsford, BC, this exhibition presents the work of Vancouver artist Ruth Beer who uses sculpture, woven structures and video to address the interlaced relationships between extracted resources such as oil and copper, and the environment and culture. Copper is a culturally significant material in the lives of many BC first nations. In the 21st century, it is primarily a commodity, highly valued by western culture for its industrial usage. Like oil, it is something that we depend upon, but which can also have a detrimental impact upon the world we inhabit. Beer’s seductive artwork makes use of copper and other materials to address this complex state of being and the relationship of commodity and materiality with a subtle visual wit that is both innovative and thought provoking.