I made the long trek to UBC last week to see I Belong Here…, a show of recent work by Pilar Mehlis at Regent College’s Lookout Gallery. This was my first visit to the gallery, as I’d never heard of it previous to learning about Pilar’s show. It’s a small bright space with lots of natural light.

The show featured a mix of framed paintings and sculpture all featuring the half-human, half-fish figures.

I am familiar with Pilar’s work through visits to her studio during the Culture Crawl, and I like her style of magic realism. With the current body of work she is “exploring the transformative effect of immigration by juxtaposing elements of human and animal migration. In this instance I chose the Chinook salmon as it has migratory patterns which echo my own trajectories up and down the Pacific Coast and also for its significant place in West Coast culture.” Read more about these pieces in the artist statement on her website.