Diving into Kelp

Soon after I moved to James Bay I noticed an art installation in the front yard of a dentists' office, in a converted house on Cook Street.

House on Cook Street

Even after seeing the beaches piled with it, it took me some time before I realized what this flowing art was depicting: Bull kelp! 

Last month I walked with a friend along the beach along Holland Point, below Dallas Road. There was so much kelp washed up onto the shoreline that the walking was tricky. In some places over a foot of kelp lay thick. It is slippery to walk on; footholds are difficult.

Kelp along beach at Holland Point, November 14, 2021

Another view of the kelp, November 14, 2021

I have seen kelp washed up before, but this time, I decided to learn a little about what was going on.

I've learned that the west coast is rich in kelp, with over 50 species growing here. Kelp is an algae; amazingly, the huge strands I saw on the beach all grew during the summer growing season. 

The kelp on the beach is Bull kelp, and a member of the brown algae family. It is considered  the most plentiful kelp in the oceans of the west coast. Along the beaches of Dallas Road I can look out and see the floats of the kelp, bobbing like so many seal heads in the water.

It is kelp which gives an intoxicating pungency to the sea air along the coast here - a fragrance that I never tire of.

Kelp grows rapidly, and can become huge (as long as 80 feet)! Kelp is secured by a "holdfast" (see next image).

Kelp Holdfasts

By fall the kelp is dying back. The kelp I saw strewn onto the beach are part of a natural cycle. 

Like everything else in nature, kelp plays an essential role in the ecosystem, both when it is in the ocean, and thrown up on shore.

A few days later I walked the same beach; the high tides had removed most of the kelp I saw earlier.

The ocean reclaimed much of the kelp that was here November 14. This photo was taken four days later on November 18.

Kelp is of critical importance to the cultures and lives of the peoples who have traditionally lived on this land. I found a good summary of the many roles played by kelp at  https://nwstraits.org/media/2925/appendix_b_the-cultural-importance-of-kelp-for-pacific-northwest-tribes.pdf

One of the points which intrigued me was how kelp was seen as a "link between worlds" - between the undersea world, and the surface world. This connection is shown in the work of artist Sarah Jim, shown below.

Design on a BC Hydro box in Sidney BC, by Coast Salish artist Sarah Jim. https://www.sarahjimstudio.com/ In her artist's statement, Jim speaks about how language, culture, traditional knowledge and art are all intimately linked to the natural realm. 

Since European contact, kelp forests have been declining, A story in the independent news media The Narwhal talks about how the loss of sea otters led to an explosion of sea urchins in waters around Haida Gwaii, which in turn over-predated on kelp, leading to loss of kelp forests. 

The Narwhal story describes some of the efforts being made to recreate kelp forests. See https://thenarwhal.ca/haida-gwaiis-kelp-forests-disappeared-heres-how-theyre-being-brought-back-to-life/

Researchers have used British Admirality charts to help document the historic range of kelp on the BC Coast. Source: Article on the historic distribution of kelp along the BC Coast, 1858 to 1956. Full citation at end of this post. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0143622819312160?via%3Dihub

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Finally - I've learned about the potential of kelp as a sustainable food source. A Canadian Geographic story discussed this - https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/kelp-sustainable-superfood-coming-soon-plate-near-you

Cascadia Seaweed, based in Sidney, is focussing on the opportunities of farming kelp. There is a history of how one individual, Louis Druehl, explored commercial kelp production at https://www.cascadiaseaweed.com/should-canada-be-hungry-to-farm-seaweed

Home Page, Cascadia Seaweed https://www.cascadiaseaweed.com

Here is one more artistic depiction of kelp around the Victoria area.

Another artistic depiction of kelp, in the Ocean of Consciousness Mural, Dallas Road

Earlier this year Victoria hosted a first-ever "Seaweed Festival". Sponsored by Cascadia Seaweed and a host of other funders, Seaweed Days was aimed at showcasing the rich potential of seaweed.for food and sustainability. 

https://www.seaweeddays.com/

My curiosity about kelp has led me into a research rabbit hole. There is much to explore about this natural wonder. 

For anyone wanting more information about kelp, its natural history and role in the ecosystem, I've included the sites I visited for this blog. There is much more which could be written, but this is a blog rather than a research paper!

Research sites

https://www.nic.bc.ca/about-us/research/carti/projects/kelp-research-with-kwiakah-first-nation/

https://www.nationalobserver.com/2021/02/02/news/coastal-first-nations-ahead-curve-cultivating-seaweed-industry

https://sierraclub.bc.ca/kelp/

https://www.canadiangeographic.ca/article/kelp-sustainable-superfood-coming-soon-plate-near-you

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121012074659.htm

https://www.ncnseafood.com/our-news/

https://www.ncnseafood.com/

https://www.cascadiaseaweed.com/partnership-with-nuu-chah-nulth-seafood-lp

https://www.cascadiaseaweed.com/

https://www.cascadiaseaweed.com/about

https://koveocean.com/blogs/news

A Window Diversion

I've been working on another post, but it's requiring so much research it is beginning to feel like a term paper! So I've diverted myself for awhile to an activity that I enjoy at any time of year, although in the holiday season perhaps especially so - appreciating window design.

Here are a few window displays that have pleased me as I wander the downtown.

A bank on Douglas Street giving a nod to Pride.

Tuscan Kitchen, near the Bay Centre. I liked the choice of warm colours in this display.

A simple display in a store in Market Square; again, the warm colours invite the passer-by into the store.

What this window lacks in colour it makes up for with the intricate designs of the woven baskets

This is another window design with more muted colours, helped by the shimmer of the fabrics, and the different textures of the objects. This is the window of a floral shop in James Bay.

A monochromatic window design that proves that colour is not essential to attract attention. This shop is a  jewellery store on Govenment Street.

Moving from exterior visuals to interior visuals....

Continuing the seasonal theme - this is inside the Bay Centre. I liked the choice of bright blue for the banners describing the "Festival of Trees".

Another seasonal image from inside the Bay Centre. This is part of a "Winter Wonderland" into which people are invited to walk and take photographs. I wonder how many responded as I did - a little wistful for the peaceful feeling of being in the forest in deep snow (but only a little, as I remember the treacherous icy sidewalks and slushy roads that so quickly follow those wondrous snowfalls).

I was attracted to this flowing sculpture in the Bay Centre hanging high above me, but did not analyze it closely until later, when I examined the photo. Bird?

This creation, with its homage to BC's chief Medical Officer of Health and her mantra Be Kind, Be Calm, Be Safe, was applied to painted plywood in front of an empty storefront for lease in the Bay Centre.

Some of the amazing colours of Fluevog shoes, looking out the window.

I was so awestruck by Fluevog shoestore that I couldn't help myself from taking more photos. Here is one more:

These make me think they might be worn by a character in a Shakespeare play - perhaps Venice in the Renaissance?

A rainbow of coloured shawls in this kiosk in the Bay Centre.

More colours and designs from another Bay Centre kiosk.

This unusual display made me do a double-take when I saw it through the store window. 

Mural seen from the escalator inside Russell Books.

As well as communicating with design, windows can communicate with words - advertising a seasonal sale or an inventory reduction special. But sometimes those words convey a different message. Here are a few I have found.

I saw this window a year ago when Covid had shut a lot of businesses down. I totally resonate with the question asked: which parts of "normal" do we want to go back to? 

Sign at the Root Cellar on Mackenzie.

While not a window, this sidewalk sandwich board caught my attention. The store owners are making a statement as to where their views are aligned. It's another reflection of communication, and standing out from the crowd.

I appreciate the artistic endeavors of those who have designed the windows I have featured here.

And, perhaps even more, I appreciate the efforts of those who are trying to forge a way of being a business in the world of today, as attested by the last three images. Themes of local and sustainable, justice and ethics resonate for me as a consumer. 

The Grace of the Curve - Part 2

Just after posting my last piece, I heard Victoria-based Trevor Hancock talk about beauty in the urban environment. Trevor is a passionate advocate for healthy, sustainable communities. His definition of beauty included more of the emotional response than my definition in Part 1 suggested. He used phrases such as "beauty stirs the soul", "makes life worth living", and "provides intense satisfaction of the mind". 

That is strong stuff! It raises the bar to a high level for designing spaces and buildings in the urban environment. I'm not sure there is much in a city that can hope to achieve the sublime kind of beauty implied by those words. But perhaps it's worth a try! And perhaps, cumulatively, hundreds of individual choices about our living environment can add to beautiful design.

In my previous post, Part 1, I offered thoughts about how curves can add another aesthetic to building design. Here, in Part 2 of "The Grace of the Curve", I look at ideas for adding curves "after the fact". If a building's already there, what can be done to change the visual appeal? 

This is an excellent example of how an interesting pathway with some landscaping can provide counterpoint to a building characterized by simple straight lines and painted in monochromatic shades.The curves of the flagstone path are further emphasized by the defined edges made of stone. 

A curved pathway with an inlaid circular motif within it; a fountain, and rounded columns all soften the vertical and horizontal lines of this building and fence

Another curved path of flagstones. In this case, the rounded shapes of the landscaping plants also soften the overall appearance.

This curved pathway and landscaping transforms what would otherwise be a "boxy" apartment building

This pathway connecting the front door to the sidewalk could just as easily have been a straight line perpendicular to the sidewalk. Instead, the curve - coupled with the brick - provides a far more elegant and attractive look. Note: because Victoria's summers are very dry, grass turns brown. Municipalities, and many property owners, actively discourage lawn watering. With fall rains, grass turns green again.

A few simple curved lines provided by the inlaid rock, and the tree, add to the appeal of this landscaping.

The builders of this stone wall chose to go round the corner in a curve, rather than at right angles. 

Designers of public spaces also can employ curves to soften straight lines.

The curve of the bridge, echoed in the railings, makes an attractive counterpoint to the straight lines of the walking path.

This small sitting area between two buildings is mostly straight lines, but the curved sculpture softens those lines.

Another plaza-like space, again with mostly straight lines, but softened by the curvature of the building's exterior wall and roofline. The brick-lay design is asymmetric, which also adds to the grace of the appearance.

The curved arches of the trellis add appeal to this straight pathway near the Empress Hotel.

My final example of pathways is one of my favorite in Beacon Hill Park. 

I like the mystery of this curved path, which invites me to keep walking, to see what's around the next bend.

Not everyone can design and build a pathway. Here are a few smaller scale things I've noticed that provide curves to balance the linear edges of our urban environment.

An inlay which transforms the gate

The eye focusses on the striking oval, rather than the vertical lines of the post..

Sometimes the interest is not at eye level; this was embedded in the ground.

Another example of an attractive house number design which uses the oval, instead of a rectangle or square, to complete the design.

I don't know the history of this sculpture on a private yard on Dallas Road. It provides interest along the journey, and is such a great example of a graceful curve. 

I did a double-take the first time I walked past this fence

A funky railing adornment at the front of a vet's clinic. As well as the enjoyable light touch, the curved lines of the animals soften the hard line of the railing. 

Discovered at the back of the vet clinic

This post has focussed on examples of curves at a smaller scale, especially in our yards and outside spaces. In looking through my photos for this post, I found many more examples of curves in public spaces - things like road design, and public art. Perhaps I'm not done with the topic yet!