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Halcyon Fog, Charo Neville for KAG

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Kelly Richardson, Lyn Richards for Galleries West
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HALO I, II and III are sequels to Camp, a video which presents a cliché of outdoor life filmed in 1998. The full moon on a summer evening is distorted by the heat rising from a crackling campfire. On the fire, popcorn bursts. With each burst, the moon dances.

23 years after producing Camp, the promise of what summer brings has changed. The HALO trilogy presents two full moons, one partially red and another fully red, both distorted by heat rising from something burning and crackling out of view. The third video features a red solar eclipse known as the ring of fire; embers float around and smoke swirls.  

Past, present and future, the HALO trilogy references the significant feedback loop we are now in after decades of warnings. Campfires are now banned in the summer in British Columbia (where I live). With severe, extended droughts being the new normal, the risk of wildfire is extreme. Compounding the threat, 2021 produced record temperatures reaching a staggering 49.6C, smashing the previous record by 4.6C. It was the 3rd worst fire season on record, all three of which were recorded within the last 5 years. Simultaneously, the UN declared that it is code red for humanity as a result of climate change.

Echoing a landmark scientific study which warns of increasingly extreme heatwaves, droughts and flooding (which of course, this heatwave was followed up with months later) the UN Secretary General said: “If we combine forces now, we can avert climate catastrophe. But, as today’s report makes clear, there is no time for delay and no room for excuses.”

Installation view: Kamloops Art Gallery
Photo credits: SITE Photography