Watershed is an expansive collection of paintings by Guelph, Ontario based artist Phil Irish. The works dialogue the flow of a river through a careful collision of representational and abstracted forms. Coming together to create a series of fabricated riverscapes that allude as much to the turning points in peoples lives as they do to one river's flow through a physical environment.

The composition of the paintings are based on hand drawn maps of various spots along the river given to the artist by friends and strangers. Irish then followed these maps and expanded their documentary elements through his own drawing and photography. Eventually the personal maps are imbedded into the paintings to create works that are about another persons memory as well as the painters expression.

In the confluence and divergence of the various visual experiences the river is cast as a metaphor for transformation and renewal and presents a shared vision of our evolving landscape.

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