SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
"Interesting things happen in the intersection between wildlife and people," says Marcus Jackson, in advance of his Dead Love opening at The Gallery on 47th Street.

Marcus Jackson is a Yellowknife mixed-media artist exhibiting new pieces at The Gallery on 47th Street tonight and tomorrow. - photo courtesy of Marcus Jackson

“Most of the time, it doesn't work out well for the wildlife.”

It's been a busy year for the mixed-media artist. Dead Love will be his fifth show of 2013, following a group show in Australia and Newfoundland, a solo show at the Open Sky Creative Gallery in Fort Smith and an earlier Yellowknife exhibit with Rae Braden.

Dead Love, opening at The Gallery on 47th Street on Friday evening, puts the focus on birds.

Everyone has stumbled across a dead bird, whether it has hit a window or been left as a precious gift from a beloved family pet.

There's something about songbirds that resonates with Jackson and part of his work is about honouring the beauty of the wild creatures, even if they aren't alive anymore.

“I don't make things that a lot of people would hang over their couch,” said Jackson.

The show, opening tonight, features songbirds and caribou.

Jackson considers himself a conservationist, and after noticing a decline in the songbird population he started a series on birds.

“They travel such a long distance, thousand of miles in some cases. We're in something of a nursery, and we're lucky to see them in their beautiful breeding plumage,” said Jackson.

Jackson said even while ptarmigan hunting, he's a little conflicted about actually causing a bird harm.

“I've done some work about hunting and the blurriness surrounding it,” he said.

“I understand hunting for food, but for me it's still difficult.”

Jackson treats the birds as still lifes, they're not taxidermied – which is illegal – but found, then frozen and photographed for use in either photography or prints.

“I'm really interested to see the reaction, although most people in Yellowknife kind of know what to expect from my work,” he said.

“I'm hoping people will question what's happening to our birds, and spend some time thinking about our relationships with the environment.”

Jackson first became interested in the death of wildlife after stumbling across a dead coyote.

“My interest, anger and sadness affected me. It hit a nerve, one way or another, and that led me into what I'm doing now,” he said.

There's something beautiful in that frozen moment of time. The bird might be dead, but there's a serenity to be found.

“It's not just random photos of dead things. There's an emotional reaction, and it's a way to examine issues like meat wastage and conservation.”

Dead Love opens tonight at 6 p.m. at The Gallery on 47th Street.

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