Midnight Dispatch

Midnight Dispatch, like the rest of artist Victoria Wiercinski’s art practice, is inspired by nature and the Alberta landscape. Natural elements – wind, stars, plant husks, the colour and shape of rocks on the ground, the way trees look silhouetted against the sky at dusk, the way an orange looks when it’s sliced in half – all find their way into her drawings and final creations.

The inspiration for Midnight Dispatch came from ruminations on the Northern Lights and Alberta’s starry night skies.

Wiercinski writes, ​“Maybe you’re standing in your backyard and you’re just in awe of what you see above you – you’ve forgotten about the chill for a moment. It’s a very common experience that many [in Edmonton] take for granted – but not many people in Canada, let alone the world, live at the latitude to see Northern Lights regularly. I think as Albertans we live for those moments. I was also very aware that this artwork would be mounted on the side of a fire hall. Many people are awake and keeping watch in the night, firefighters among them. I imagine the quiet middle of the night and what firefighters might be doing. Perhaps they are sleeping, but perhaps they are outside, killing time, looking at the stars. It’s pure magic. The alarm sounds. Time to go. A midnight dispatch of another sort.”