Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
Subscription Form

Get notified of the best News

Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
22K Followers
25K Likes
5K Followers
1K Followers
Mountain Life
Mountain Life
  • Daily Content
    • Trips & Expeditions
    • Climbing
    • Mountain Biking
    • Mountain Lifer
    • Multiplicity
    • On The Trail
    • Paddling
    • Photography
    • Skiing
    • Snowboarding
    • Stay & Play
    • Surfing
    • The Great Outdoors
    • The ML Interview
    • Travel
  • GEAR
  • VIDEOS
  • STORE
  • Magazines
    • ML Coast Mountains
    • ML Rocky Mountains
    • Vie En Montagne
    • ML Blue Mountains
    • ML Annual
    • ML Subscriptions
  • ABOUT
    • What is ML?
    • Our Team
    • Newsletter
    • Adventure Grant
    • Distribution
  • Podcast
  • Contests
  • CONTACT
    • ML Agency
    • Advertising
    • Contribute
  • Mountain Lifer

Revelstoke’s Outdoor Art Renaissance

  • December 28, 2020
  • Ned Morgan
Total
16
Shares
16
0
0
0
0
0
Total
16
Shares
Share 16
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0

A public outdoor art makeover for the alleys of a southeastern B.C. mountain town. Words :: Ned Morgan. 

 

Revelstokes-Alley-Renaissance-Mona-Skisa-by-Leonardo-da-Vinsk-Buchanan
Outdoor art Renaissance: The Mona Skisa by Leonardo da Vinski, Rob Buchanan. Photo: Rob Buchanan

 

Revy Recycling Renaissance

Are we in a Recycling Renaissance? Certainly an alley in Revelstoke, B.C. is. Here, affixed to an otherwise drab cinder-block wall, is The Mona Skisa by Leonardo da Vinski—where the most famous work of the European Renaissance is reimagined as a sturdy, weatherproof piece of outdoor art. Specifically, an assemblage sculpture made of 126 “tiles” painstakingly cut from old skis and snowboards.

 

 

The artist is Blue Mountains, Ontario native Rob Buchanan who now resides in Revy. “Skis are very durable and each one is different,” he says. “Each cut required many tools including an angle grinder, jig saw, mitre saw, circular saw, scroll saw, belt sander, and Dremel. I blew up one table saw and burned out many, many blades. Cutting skis is ridiculously insane. I don’t know what possessed me to do it.”

 

Revelstokes-Alley-Renaissance-Girl-with-the-Ptex-Earring-straight-on-view-Buchanan
The Girl with the P-tex Earring by Snohannes Vermeer, Rob Buchanan. Photo: Rob Buchanan

 

Reimagining Old Skis & Snowboards

“Assemblage” is a three-dimensional medium often comprised of found objects, mounted to a resilient substrate. “In Revelstoke,” says Buchanan, “some of our most abundant objects for recycling into assemblage art are retired skis and snowboards. They were manufactured for use in harsh environments which make them very durable for long-term outdoor art. But first they need to be reimagined.”

 

Revelstokes-Alley-Renaissance-Assemblage-art-alley-in-snow-Buchanan
Photo: Rob Buchanan

 

“It’s like building a puzzle, but first you have to imagine and cut out the puzzle pieces.”

 

Buchanan’s re-imagining continues with another alley sculpture entitled The Girl with the P-tex Earring by Snohannes Vermeer—like the Leonardo, cut from old skis and snowboards to produce an even more startlingly accurate homage to the original work. Here Buchanan used both sides of the skis and snowboards—the P-tex bases and the topsheet graphics. “It’s like building a puzzle,” he explains, “but first you have to imagine and cut out the puzzle pieces.”

 

Revelstokes-Alley-Renaissance-Assemblage-art-alley-at-night-Buchanan
Photo: Rob Buchanan

 

No Ceilings: Outdoor Art “Alleries”

The assemblage sculptures represent just one “wing” of Revelstoke’s “Alleries” (Alleys + Art Galleries). A group of artists including Buchanan has been populating more alleys so they resemble the halls of an art gallery. “Except these halls are outside, have no ceilings, and there are dumpsters beside the art,” Buchanan points out. He has contributed works to the assemblage and landscape wings. A photographer, a stained glass artist, and a blacksmith have contributed to other alleys. For night viewing, solar lights illuminate each work.

 

Revelstokes-Alley-Renaissance-Rob-Buchanan-Marilyn-Monroes-Begbie-Smile-photo-by-Bruno-Long
Rob Buchanan and his Marilyn Monroe’s Begbie Smile assemblage sculpture. Photo: Bruno Long

 

Art + Clean Air

“We have three more artists lined up for 2021,” Buchanan adds. “All the pieces are permanent public outdoor art fixtures.” At a time when many bricks-and-mortar art galleries are closed or hosting only small private groups, these Alleries are even more appealing. Call it a generous and always available helping of public art with all-you-can-breathe clean mountain air on the side. Pedestrians in this iconic ski/snowboard town can breathe easier now that their alleys are no longer just for dumpsters.

More on Revelstoke’s Art Alleries here.

Artist Profile: Andy Anissimoff

Total
16
Shares
Share 16
Tweet 0
Pin it 0
Share 0
Share 0
Share 0
Related Topics
  • art
  • artist
  • Revelstoke
Ned Morgan

Previous Article
The-Garibaldi-100-Project-photo-by-BEN-HAGGAR-summit-panorama
  • Skiing
  • Photography

The Garibaldi 100 Project

  • December 26, 2020
  • Mountain Life Media
View Post
Next Article
FornixSPIN_1506_LeadBlue_03
  • THE GEAR SHED
  • SKIING GEAR
  • WINTER GEAR

Whole in One: POC’s New Fornix Helmet

  • December 29, 2020
  • Ned Morgan
View Post
You May Also Like
Bora-Boreal-Quebec-winter-cabin-stars
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Stay & Play

Bora Boréal: Frozen in Time and Ice

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 14, 2023
Skiis-and-Biikes
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Ontario
  • Skiing
  • Snowboarding

Skiis & Biikes Looks to the Future

  • Mountain Life Media
  • March 6, 2023
A-Forest-Journey-Patagonia-cover-photo
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer

A Forest Journey: The Role of Trees in the Fate of Civilization

  • Ned Morgan
  • March 2, 2023
Nalaga-Avis-O_Brien
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Women

Bringer of Light: A Conversation with N’alaga

  • Editor
  • March 1, 2023
Nnormal-No-Lost-Shoes-film
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Videos

Friday Flick: No Lost Shoes

  • Editor
  • February 17, 2023
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • On The Trail
  • Photography
  • Stay & Play

Let It Roar

  • Sarah Bulford
  • February 9, 2023
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer
  • Trips & Expeditions
  • Videos

Arc’teryx Presents: Shaped by Wild

  • Sarah Bulford
  • February 8, 2023
knorthphotography.Beverly-Glenn Copeland-crop
View Post
  • Mountain Lifer

Beverly Glenn-Copeland: Finding the Universal Broadcast

  • Mountain Life Media
  • January 17, 2023
1 comment
  1. Kelly Marcusson says:
    January 4, 2021 at 3:43 pm

    Oh my god – this is amazing – Love it!
    Can’t wait to get my hands on one of these!

    Live in Squamish – moving to Revy soon!

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Featured Posts
  • Mustang-Survival-WOMENS-HELIX-CCS 1
    Gear Shed: Our End-of-Winter Picks
    • March 23, 2023
  • natural-selection-Redbull 2
    Friday Flick: Natural Selection Tour Highlights
    • March 17, 2023
  • Powder-Highway-BC-ski 3
    Powder Highway Revisited
    • March 21, 2023
  • AleTrailsSouthernInterior_Vernon_MikeGamble_LookoutTrail_BenHaggarPhoto 4
    Ale Trails: Southern Interior Part 1, Vernon + Shuswap
    • March 20, 2023
  • Bora-Boreal-Quebec-winter-cabin-stars 5
    Bora Boréal: Frozen in Time and Ice
    • March 14, 2023
RECENT POSTS
  • Elements-Outfitters-Filson-cabin
    Elements Outfitters Partners with SALTS to Protect Alberta’s Incredible Landscapes
    • March 16, 2023
  • Uncertainty-mountains-Rockies
    Facing Uncertainty: The Role of Chance in Mountain Adventures
    • March 13, 2023
  • The-High-Route-Kaytlyn-Gerbin-Jenny-Abegg-North-Cascades-High-Route-glacier-hiking
    Friday Flick: Alpine Ultra-Run Sufferfest
    • March 10, 2023
Social Links
Instagram 22K Followers
Facebook 25K Likes
Twitter 5K Followers
Pinterest 1K Followers
Vimeo 34 Followers
LinkedIn 0
INSTAGRAM
mountainlifemedia
22K Followers
From The Gear Shed: Last Monday was the official start of spring, but we know there’s still some winter to be shredded. So ML staff and partners have picked the latest jackets, lanterns, bindings, mugs and drysuits for winter-spring.
Exploring the sights around beautiful Sutton, Quebec with ML creator @adv_bird ❄️🫶
Back on the road with three generations, dancing lifties, best-on-planet pizza and elusive-but-exquisite pow days.
Live It Up EP 24 is out now!
The Southern Interior region of BC holds an ecological cross-section of the province with alpine meadows, arid Douglas fir grasslands, damp cedar and hemlock forests of the Columbia Mountains and the warm expanse of Shuswap Lake.
Do Not Disturb mode activated ✅ #mountainlifer
Conceived by superhuman snowboarder @travisrice, the @naturalselection Tour highlights earth’s premier riders, from big-mountain mavens to Olympians, all competing on the most stoketastic—and unpredictable—terrain known to humankind.
Built upon a shared desire to enjoy, respect, and advocate for Alberta’s incredible landscapes, it was a natural fit for @elementsoutfitters to work with a local conservation organization @saltslandtrust to highlight the province’s rugged beauty and outdoor apparel to match.
THE UNINVITED INVITATIONAL April 13-16 @woodwardtahoe 😱 $40,000 cash prize purse and a whole lotta spotlight on a group of riders whose time has finally come!! Presented by @jess.kimura and @thenorthface and supported by @yeti @capitasupercorp @slushthemagazine @unionbindingco @smithoptics @sunbum @coalheadwear @fattire 🫡 watch the finals in person Saturday April 15 and join the crew + @btbounds for a public ride day Sunday April 16 @borealmtn. Time to make some history!!! #linkinbio to learn more!
Close your eyes and, for a moment, imagine yourself deep in the polar regions aboard an expedition ship stuck in the ice. The white pack-ice is dazzling, and the immobile vessel seems frozen in time and space. That experience piques your curiosity, doesn't it? Without having to go all the way to Antarctica, you can experience these icy sensations 30 minutes from Quebec City in one of Bora Boréal 's two floating cottages.
Follow

Subscribe

Subscribe now to our newsletter

From The Gear Shed: Last Monday was the official start of spring, but we know there’s still some winter to be shredded. So ML staff and partners have picked the latest jackets, lanterns, bindings, mugs and drysuits for winter-spring.
Exploring the sights around beautiful Sutton, Quebec with ML creator @adv_bird ❄️🫶
Back on the road with three generations, dancing lifties, best-on-planet pizza and elusive-but-exquisite pow days.
Live It Up EP 24 is out now!
The Southern Interior region of BC holds an ecological cross-section of the province with alpine meadows, arid Douglas fir grasslands, damp cedar and hemlock forests of the Columbia Mountains and the warm expanse of Shuswap Lake.
Do Not Disturb mode activated ✅ #mountainlifer
Mountain Life
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Advertising

Input your search keywords and press Enter.