SkyDam
SkyDam
By Nathan Lee
Photograph courtesy of the Richmond Public Art Program
Installed in 2016, this temporary public art installation by Nathan Lee was the second commissioned work as part of Richmond Public Art’s Art Plinth Program. Located on the final concrete pier supporting the guide-way at Brighouse terminus station, the work resembles a beaver’s dam, comprised of welded steel planks and accompanied by a family of three sculptural beavers.
The artist was inspired by the beaver as an emblem of Canada and their role as a keystone species within the ecosystem. When beavers dam a river or stream, they modify the water table of the surrounding area, creating lakes and ponds that provide habitat for fish, birds, and other wildlife. Like the beaver, the people of Richmond have created a home by altering their natural surroundings, creating a rapidly evolving urban landscape that is constantly growing to serve a culturally diverse population.
Presented in partnership with the Richmond Public Art Program and the Canada Line Public Art Program – InTransitBC