Shortlisted finalist for a major public art installation in Hamilton for Battlefield Park to commemorate the battle there during the war of 1812.

Designed in 2012.

“My installation creates a space that will immerse viewers in an audio and experiential simulation of the event, a narrative of the battle itself, casting them in the role of the vanquished Yankees. It will highlight the importance of the Battle of Stoney Creek and acknowledge the generous and strategic contribution of the Grand River Warriors.”

Installation concept:

Details of the battle will be revealed to visitors using engraved panels set into a gently curving sidewalk leading to the center of the work. Blue lights symbolically representing the American troops, who were identified as bluecoats at the time, emerge from within the path. A strategically placed sensor will spark a sound-sequence of recorded war cries. Seven figurative and gestural sculptures organized in a wide circle among newly planted fruit trees emit the sound. These human-scale steel rod and bronze plated sculptures will be co-designed and embellished by Anishinabe artist Clayton King. The embellishments flesh out the forms and also contain audio equipment. The sound will bounce from one figure to another around the circle and increase steadily until all of the sculptures cry out together. As the sound increases, the blue light will fade. When the lights are extinguished the sounds taper off one by one, and the sequence ends depicting the outcome of the battle of Stoney Creek.

Special THANK YOU to Marnie Bettridge for providing the architectural renderings of the site.