Donald Barber HUNG in Mississauga City hall

I am HUNG in City hall
BUT
not framed by local Environmental Artist Activist - Laurie Kallis.
So much their bail restrictions ......

This is a really nice portrait of me in the Cawthra Bush on a cold day in March 2007,
so barren of life that the forest looks and feels like a grave yard with the skeletons escaping their graves
as if to further draw your attention to life being in retreat, in the cold dark days of winter,
with the hope & promise
of the rebirth of spring,
of life from its hiding places,
of the warmth & care free days of summer,
as just like empty political election rhetoric.
Is so symbolic for how life felt like at this point.
But still soldiering on.

Laurie's Artist statement;

Keeper of the Grove,
a winter portrait of activist Don Barber in the Cawthra Bush.

Recognized as one of the fastest growing major cities in Canada, Mississauga has faced the challenge of protecting natural greenspaces and heritage properties during this stage of massive development.

At the end of my street, nestled beside access ramps to the QEW—terrain otherwise dominated by concrete and asphalt —Cawthra Bush presents an unexpected oasis of towering trees, lush undergrowth and wetlands that support an array of wildlife.

Swimming against the stream of development supportive policies, Don Barber is a community watchdog who speaks for this irreplaceable natural treasure of Mississauga. In our comfortable society, Don Barber’s efforts may appear extreme [1],
but I have no doubt that his struggle will be deeply appreciated by future generations of Mississauga residents.
If the Cawthra Bush is preserved.

That's right, my portrait is in an art show, in Mississauga City hall called DEFINING MISSISSAUGA!
Oh, yeah who is the man?
Hear they did not want pictures of the Mayor or City hall for this show and we all know why.

Hanging out with the artist - so nice she was able to sneak me past the Mayor's Security Guards
who march around City hall dressed in their all black uniforms - looking for enforcement opportunities.

At work. Interesting how the computer is set up with the image she is painting,
more about that and the picture she worked from - here, www.wetcanvas.com

1. - "extreme"? Well if this is not a case of the kettle calling the pot black or maybe she really means other people not her - having been to the same places I have in dealing with local government. True that many Canadians would consider speaking-up on any matter that they did not have a large finical investment in as being "extreme". That speaking truth in the face of power would be called "extreme". That asserting one's right to be meaningfully involved in government decision making is "extreme". To suggest to the police you, as a Canadian citizen have Charter Rights & Freedoms is "extreme", as they in a not so polite fashion violate them. Maybe we should reconsider what "extreme" should really mean in our culture. ]