Thanks for the Meal project coming to life
By Luke Edwards
Of all the tools an artist could employ, the shovel is rarely one of them.
But as crews prepared a patch of land on Niagara Stone Road just west of The Hare Wine Co. for a new art installation, Ron Clavier ditched the brush and pencil in favour of a spade, as the group behind the Thanks for the Meal project celebrated a groundbreaking for its debut work.
“It’s an appreciation for what our farmers do for us,” said Clavier as he posed for a photo with shovel in hand.
While the shovel was only ceremonial - the real work is being done by local businesses, supporters and Niagara College students who are supporting the effort - it marked a significant milestone for the project that’s been in the mind of Clavier for several years.
Once complete, the patch of land will be home to a massive, 16-foot-high piece of artwork based on a work by Shayde Sandy, of Cayuga Nation, with the help of Raymond Skye, of Tuscarora Nation. The Art Gallery of Niagara-on-the-Lake commissioned Sandy to create the work, which features the first farmers of Niagara: three Indigenous women, representing the three sisters of corn, squash and beans.
The project is based on similar artworks in and around the Salinas Valley of California, which was home to American author John Steinbeck and which featured heavily in many of his books. Years ago local artist John Cerney began creating large artworks that were placed in farmer’s fields highlighting Steinbeck and other aspects of Americana.
It inspired Clavier to come up with a similar idea to honour farmers in Niagara.
“It’s art designed to get you to see things in a way you haven’t considered before,” Clavier said, adding farmers can often be underappreciated for the work they do to provide food for towns and cities.
“It is a thank-you to the people who planted and harvested, to Indigenous peoples whose agricultural traditions reach back centuries, to the families and workers who built Niagara agriculture, and to the artists, students, tradespeople and community organizations helping preserve those stories for another generation.
Clavier said the hope is that the project will have multiple benefits, from promoting heritage and honouring farmers to acting as another catalyst to bring visitors to NOTL and provide a small boost to the local economy.
While Clavier, an artist who also created the large mural visible to those passing the Niagara Orchard and Vineyard Corp building in Virgil, said he would have loved to create the Thanks for the Meal pieces himself, he thought it important to incorporate members of the community each artwork represents.
That’s why they found Indigenous artists for the first piece, and why he’s searching for the right artist to create future works recognizing NOTL’s grape and wine history or the British Loyalists who settled here in the late 18th century.
“Importantly, Indigenous culture is not simply being interpreted by outsiders. Skye and Sandy are participating as artists and cultural consultants, helping ensure that Haudenosaunee stories are presented with accuracy, care and respect,” said Clavier.
“Too often communities celebrate Indigenous history by speaking about Indigenous people. This project gives Indigenous artists a meaningful role in telling their own story.”
Clavier initially hoped to have the debut artwork put up this spring, but weather and timing delayed things. But with ground being broken in September, he remained hopeful it would be fully unveiled this fall.
And with the first installation going up, Clavier and his group are now looking to additional works, and fundraising to help pay for the cost.
For more information or to support the project, contact Clavier at 416-706-0900, ronclavier.com or eye.to.eye@ronclavier.com.
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