On March 1, 2020 the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco will open its doors to Into the Arctic, an exhibition of paintings and film by artist Cory Trépanier that highlights the beauty and fragility of Canada’s changing North. It will be on display until April 30, 2020.
Over the course of more than a decade, Trépanier has travelled 60,000 km, through six National Parks, and 16 Inuit communities to capture the spectacular landscapes of the Canadian Arctic. Armed with perseverance and an unwavering dedication to his vision, he has created over 100 oil paintings and three documentary films during the course of his art-fuelled expeditions.
Into the Arctic premiered at the Embassy of Canada in Washington DC in January 2017, subsequently touring to six venues in the US and three in Canada. After its European premiere in Monaco it is scheduled for display in Texas with additional venues to follow in North America.
In 2018, Trépanier received an invitation to screen his Into the Arctic: Awakening film before HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco. There it was announced that Cory’s exhibition would follow, making him the first Canadian artist to have a solo exhibition at the Oceanographic Museum.
Both of their stories offer shared parallels – HSH Prince Albert II’s great-great-grandfather Prince Albert I had been a pioneer in oceanography and scientific Arctic exploration. That passion for exploration and pursuit of environmental advocacy has been exemplified by His Serene Highness through his life and the work of his foundation in the preservation of our oceans and poles.
“We have no choice: we must protect Arctic ice, enable it to continue to act as an essential temperature regulator for the planet, avoid the catastrophic rise in sea levels that would result from the ice melt, and stop the disappearance of permafrost releasing irreversible quantities of greenhouse gases back into the atmosphere. It is a duty for ourselves and for all of humanity – for our children, of course, but also all those who are already suffering the dramatic effects of these developments.” – HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco
The Oceanographic Museum is thrilled to share this unprecedented collection of over 50 oil paintings, three films, and the centrepiece Great Glacier, which at five metres wide is one of the largest paintings ever created of Canada’s North. Into the Arctic passionately explores a changing landscape that most will never witness in person. It offers the public the opportunity to experience the wonders of the Arctic, and understand the gravity of what we risk to lose.
The tour is presented in part by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society/Canadian Geographic; one of Canada’s oldest and largest educational, non-profit organisations, dedicated to promoting and enhancing public awareness for Canadian geography and heritage. It is also presented in part by HATCH, a professional services, engineering, and technology consultancy serving the mining, energy, digital, investments, and infrastructure sectors for more than 65 years. The tour is produced by David J. Wagner, LLC.
ORIGINAL SOURCE: Press release
