Bill Burns: Safety Gear for Small Animals

Additional Information

Other associated events: Opening Reception and Artist Talk Saturday, May 7, 7:00 pm Animals in Art History May 31, 7:30 pm Regina Public Library Film Theatre Dr. Johanne Sloan will provide an art historical context for Bill Burns's Safety Gear for Small Animals, discussing how art works from centuries past depicted animals, wildness, and ecological interdependence.

Safety Gear for Small Animals: Bill Burns, Director is about animal rescue, relocation and rehabilitation. Bill Burns is the Director of Safety Gear for Small Animals, "the largest safety gear for small animals producer in the world." Using the conventions of a traditional natural history museum, Burns juxtaposes his tiny rescue and safety items for endangered animals with helpful information that guides viewers through the exhibition. But along with the appeal of the miniscule safety glasses for protecting the white-footed mouse, the Italian mineral water for the masked puddle frog, and the bulletproof vest for our feathered friends, Bill Burns offers a frightening warning about our stewardship of the environment. Curator Annette Hurtig comments, "While providing sound scientific fact, the exhibition functions also as a kind of cautionary tale, as a moral fable, an apologue, if you will, and as a visual allegory, offering lessons and pragmatic advice for those interested in the plight of animals." The exhibition presents a survey of the work of this Toronto-based artist over the past ten years. Bill Burns was born and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Safety Gear for Small Animals: Bill Burns, Director is about animal rescue, relocation and rehabilitation. Bill Burns is the Director of Safety Gear for Small Animals, "the largest safety gear for small animals producer in the world." Using the conventions of a traditional natural history museum, Burns juxtaposes his tiny rescue and safety items for endangered animals with helpful information that guides viewers through the exhibition. But along with the appeal of the miniscule safety glasses for protecting the white-footed mouse, the Italian mineral water for the masked puddle frog, and the bulletproof vest for our feathered friends, Bill Burns offers a frightening warning about our stewardship of the environment. Curator Annette Hurtig comments, "While providing sound scientific fact, the exhibition functions also as a kind of cautionary tale, as a moral fable, an apologue, if you will, and as a visual allegory, offering lessons and pragmatic advice for those interested in the plight of animals." The exhibition presents a survey of the work of this Toronto-based artist over the past ten years. Bill Burns was born and raised in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Bill Burns, Safety Gear for Small Animals (Installation View), 2005.