Biscuit - Before Breeding, 2002.





Brandy, Lemon and Lime - Escaping Bugs, in progress.





Biscuit Dreamtime, 2002.





Imprinting, 2002.

(Click on any Image to see a higher resolution version)

A Closer Look
The drawings have followed a similar path to those of past years except I am closer to my subjects and thereby more intimate. The levels of trust both with Brandy, her cubs and Biscuit allow me to come in tight with my camera thereby catching nuances of body language and personality not otherwise possible. The drawings Biscuit - Before Breeding shows her only a few feet away from me looking at something on the ground. That drawing was followed by a sequence of her searching the lake for early fish poised for action, ignoring me standing 6 feet out in the water. I realize that I am now starting to interpret actions and intents of Biscuit and Brandy through such long association. My drawings are starting to be about what bears look like when they accept a human's presence peacefully with no animosity. With the drawing in progress titled Brandy, Lemon and Lime - Escaping Bugs, they are all sleeping in total trust of my presence in front of them. I think many of my drawings could be marginalized as unimportant cute bear pictures. They reflect the peace and acceptance that is possible for humans to have with them at very close range. Historically such a look has been the stuff of anthropomorphizing or toys for children. I hope my drawings help to bring about an understanding with image, that words cannot achieve, that is about permission for bears and people to be close to one another and at peace.

I have developed a pattern of alternating painting exploration with that of drawing. I am using my tracks cast in plaster and traces of what is left behind when something has gone (a feather from a bird) on the canvas. I pour a plaster/glue mixture of tracks etc. on the canvas. I add a drawn element and painted areas. The first completed here at our base camp, Biscuit Dreamtime is the first attempt on paper. The second, Imprinting, was completed last week. I look forward to more on larger canvases when I return to my Cochrane studio. I am not really cognizant of what this new work is about intellectually. There is certainly a thread of my earlier philosophy about windows of opportunity. I believe there is a small window of time left whereby man can get it right about what is possible for coexisting on this planet with a summit predator like the bear. I think they are also about my belief that humans could leave a smaller print of their presence. These new paintings are more symbolic pieces. As they evolve so will the symbolic content of the objects cast onto the surface.

Weather
After a June and July of almost nonstop good weather, the true Kamchatka days of rain, fog and wind have returned. We have been in a storm since July 26th with only 2 short interludes of single semi-sunny days. The last storm, more like a hurricane, hit us with winds of up to 100 MPH and continuous heavy rain for two days. The lake raised about 2 feet in those days and there were new ponds in places we could not imagine. The good side is the salmon came up the river. There are more fish in Kambalnoye Lake than any other year. The bad side is that the lake is so high it is hard for the bears to catch the dying salmon. They are now finding dead ones washing ashore and catching the odd one.

Wolf Sighting
I saw a wolf across the lake yesterday. We found tracks up in the basin earlier this year. It is the first we have seen in here. It may have been with a pack but it was traveling fast and disappeared from view before I could determine if there were more.

- Maureen