Latchford artist's new exhibit focuses on connections during COVID-19

Timmins -

In the past two years during the COVID-19 pandemic, artist Bruce Cull has been using the time to produce a collection of works he calls 'Collections and Responses.'

Born in Sturgeon Falls, Cull now lives with his family in the country, a short drive away from Latchford. He said he feels a strong connection with nature.

"I have a stream out behind the house and we’ll go out and we’ll walk along the stream," Cull said. "There’s a certain spot and there’s these beautiful cedar trees that have been there for God knows how long and it's isolated and we go and connect to that directly."

In fact, he said, the most important aspect of all of our lives is our sense of connection.

"I just think that if we’re not connected to something, then we don’t care as much about anything," Cull said. "We’re in true isolation, you know, sort of a mental isolation."

He said his work expresses his fear of lost connections with each other and with the environment. He said over time, we have lost it by letting ourselves be severed from the world of which we are a part.

"So we’re slowly moving in this direction, being on a device and thinking we’re connecting ... but it’s not the same as connecting across the table," Cull said.

Museum employees said this is not an exhibition people should rush through.

"There’s a lot of detail in his artwork which is awesome," said Talisa Belec. "Take a really good look at it and see the beautiful things like the colours, the details and everything."

Through the exhibition, Cull encourages people to rediscover all or some forms of connection, since that is what he said brings us hope and strength.