LES ARBRES INDIGÈNES DU CANADA

While shopping at The Monkey's Paw secondhand bookstore in Toronto, Leanne Shapton came across a 1956 edition of the essential reference work The Native Trees of Canada, originally published in 1917 by the Canadian Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources. While many might see this book as nothing more than a dry inventory of a mundane subject, Shapton was able to discern beauty in the technical details and found the inspiration to create her own interpretation of the work.

Shapton reduces each image to its simplest form, using vivid colors made from rich inks and house paint. She seizes upon the subjects to distill them into bold, almost abstract shapes and colors: the black birch is depicted by two vibrant red bulbs standing out against a grey background, while the eastern white pine is represented by a close-up of its pinecone against a backdrop of a brilliant summer sky.