Rail (Switch), charcoal on paper

Vancouver-based artist Craig Brumwell uses his practice to explore the cultural and allegorical meaning of objects, especially those objects that appear disused or nearing the end of their life. The artist uses a range of media to explore these concepts, presenting imagery in a straightforward, documentarian fashion.

Rail (Backshore Crossing), charcoal on paper

In our previous feature of Craig’s mixed-media installation, we looked at his Rail series. Combining drawing, installation, and video formats, the artist showcased a disused section of railway, contrasting two temporal moments in the objects’ life. In the installations, the object is presented in a state of partial renewal, Craig having sanded off years worth of rust to reveal a gleaming metal construction underneath. Juxtaposed with drawings of the object in its long-term location, the viewer gets a sense of the overall lifetime of a single section of rail.

The front page of Craig's portfolio website

I’m interested to see what Craig has been up to in more recent years, and how his practice has evolved.

Rail Installation, hand-filed rail segments and filings