Kelly & Thomas Cannell

"Land is usually depicted as steady and stable, Sea as unpredictable, and Sky as free spirited."

Our account of Land, Sea and Sky is a contemporary tale about our homeland. Legends have been thought about time immemorial and passed on generation to generation. They are contemporary tales because the story is always changing. An Eagles spirit, or the spirit of a bear is not always the same thing. Different characteristics and different places mean different things.

Kelly and I have created a contemporary design that demonstrates the way nature flows together. In some cases you will see water flowing down a stream, or the wind blowing through the trees, or the trees themselves and their underground roots.

Land is: blades of grass, a deer is prancing through from the forest just for the fun of it. A beaver emerges through the reeds at shore, looking for another tree to chew down. He has found it but is weary of predators all the time. This time, only small creatures of the forest are hidden.

Sea is: the west coast dream. Killer whales are chasing salmon around the Salish Sea. Kelp is flowing in the currents, maybe it is herring spawning season. Flounders down below are oblivious to another world above the surface. Cod are hiding amongst the rocks waiting for an easy meal.

Sky: are birds in flight. Winds falling from the nearby mountains keep fulls down by the seashore where food is plentiful. Herons stay vigil of their marsh while ducks and geese take a break from their journey. To the untrained eye, there is nothing remarkable about bobbling birds offshore, but to some, it is a miracle.

Life is transient, hardly still, even though we don't see it, branches are deliberately growing, underwater habitats are being bathed with tide, and water vapors rise into the atmosphere ot fall far away. Happenings are all around us, ready to be re-discovered again and again.

The broken circle of each design element refers to fragmented spindle whorls artifacts and the separations we see between these elements. Only when we see the whole picture together will the circle be complete. Our home is to inspire people to look closer in order to understand the subtleties and multitude of factors involved in our world.