Public Art and Commissioned Art
Public art is like the nonfiction version of art. Instead of working in a private personal universe, public art is tethered to the real world in some way. It’s ontologically similar to writing a travel article or a historical biography. Commissioned art is also like this.
Public art is also an amazing way to learn about new ways of making objects, as well as meeting new people along the way. My goal has always been to make life feel like art school, and public art has been an enormous part of this drive.
Golden Tree
Vancouver, Canada
January 1, 2016
Standing 43 feet tall, Coupland has set the sculpture in front of a 25-foot by 40-foot image of Stanley Park, which has been installed above the front entrance to Intracorp’s MC2 development at Cambie Street and SE Marine Drive. Made out of steel-reinforced resin and fiberglass and encased in a gold finish, the piece took […]
Four Seasons
Toronto, Canada
January 14, 2014
“The colours come from those used in boxes of Laurentien pencil crayons.”
Terry Fox Memorial
Vancouver, Canada
January 3, 2011
Terrance Stanley Fox (1958 – 1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated due to cancer, he embarked on an east to west cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after […]
Infinite Tire
Vancouver, Canada
January 5, 2012
The series of stacked tires, each smaller than the one beneath it, is a riff on famous Romanian artist Constantin Brancusi’s “Infinite Column” but with the national store chain’s tires.
Digital Orca
Vancouver, Canada
January 7, 2009
The raison d’etre of the piece was to commemorate the workers in and around Burrard Inlet and Coal Harbour. The site’s owners, Pavco specifically wanted artists to consider the past, present and future of the site.