From September 20 to October 11, four talented local artists are showcasing unique art installations throughout four of Charlottetown Heritage Squares. Visitors can enjoy a self-guided tour, using the map below to explore each piece and delve into the stories behind the trees and artists involved.
Residents and visitors are also invited to an Artist Talk at The Guild on Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. Attendees will have an opportunity to meet the artists and hear firsthand how Charlottetown’s culture and history influenced their creations.
Charlottetown’s urban forest was the inspiration for Rooted in Art. Trees are among the city’s most valuable assets, offering countless benefits from cooling and cleaning the air, to reducing noise and managing stormwater. For example, a single tree can sequester more than 1,100 pounds of carbon, save 330 kilowatt-hours of energy and divert over 30,000 litres of stormwater every year.
Meet the trees and artists:
Hillsborough Square
Hillsborough Square is one of five historic squares in Charlottetown. It was set aside in the design of the revised plan of Charlottetown undertaken by surveyor, Thomas Wright on order of Governor Walter Patterson in 1771. The Square is named after Wills Hill, Earl of Hillsborough. Like the other squares, it has played host to a variety of activities including band concerts, ball games and pasturing animals. For many years it also served as a gathering space for the nearby Notre Dame convent and academy.
Jody Racicot - If You Could See What I Have Seen
Jody Racicot has spent 37 years creating in the fields of fine craft, sculpture, film, television and theatre. He has served on the board of directors of the PEI Arts Council and the Canadian Crafts Federation. Jody has been awarded project grants from Canada Council for the Arts and the Province of PEI. His creations have been exhibited from coast-to-coast and featured in numerous publications. His multiple sculptures are displayed in collections across the Island.
"Often there’s a wall in a person’s home decorated with framed pictures spanning decades. These pictures give the viewer an impression of the resident’s personal history. What if an aged Red Maple tree showed us its pictures? What memories, relationships and scenes would they share? How would the tree see our world?
Standing sentinel on Weymouth Street, a Hillsborough Square Red Maple tree serves as this story’s narrator and witness. The artist imagines the tree's past surrounding its trunk in stylized pictures made from recycled metals."
City Tree #686 – Acer Rubrum | Red Maple
Native to PEI, I can best be identified in the autumn, when my smooth leaves change from a rich green to a brilliant red colour. As I grow, I will continue to bring more and more benefits to my surroundings. Like all trees, I also have the ability to sequester carbon dioxide, mitigating the effects of climate change, as well as improve air quality, provide habitat for animals and insects, and help manage storm water. The larger I get, the better I will be at doing all of these things.
King Square
Originally named North Square, for United Kingdom Prime Minister, Lord Frederick North, it would later be renamed King Square for the British monarch. Throughout much of the 19th Century, King Square was surrounded by industrial and commercial activity. A number of PEI’s well-known furniture makers, such as Mark Butcher and Mark Wright, had their factories in the area. Today, the public art in the square that features large chairs pay tribute to the 19th century cabinetmaker, Mark Butcher, whose high-quality furniture can still be found in many homes.
Krishna Alpeshkumar Dalwadi - Breathing Motifs
Only days after relocating to Charlottetown, Krishna stumbled upon a gathering of people creating posters for a climate rally in Rochford Park. She was drawn to the community and shared purpose. As an architect, she is especially sensitive to the relationship between the built environment and the natural world.
Though not Canadian by birth, she feels a responsibility to make a meaningful contribution to the place she now calls home. Krishna wants to encourage others, especially young people, to be aware of their surroundings, their local species, and the fragile beauty that sustains us.
"Warli is a tribal art style by the Warli indigenous community from Maharashtra, India. It has been practiced since the 10th century. Using lanterns and traditional Warli Art, the tree’s living history is transformed into a visual form, reminding us that trees are more than landscape elements; they provide shade, meeting places, and dwellings for various birds and animals. Warli has an ability to transform complex narratives into clear, rhythmic visuals by the use of simple geometric shapes. The choice to use Warli allows the artist to share an aspect of her cultural heritage and introduces the community to a unique style of visual storytelling."
City Tree #600 Quercus Rubra | Red Oak
I am well known for being PEI’s official tree and can be found on the provincial flag. I am a native species that is well adapted to the Island’s climate as I put down strong roots that help me to withstand high winds during storms. I grow quickly and, when the conditions are right, can live up to 500 years. My ability to survive storms is one example of why it is important to plant native species that are resilient to the increasingly intense storms the Island will experience as a result of climate change.
Connaught Square
Connaught Square is one of five historic squares in Charlottetown. It was set aside in the design of the revised plan of Charlottetown undertaken by surveyor, Thomas Wright on order of Governor Walter Patterson in 1771. The Square has had various names associated with it, most related to the English ruling and political class with one exception - it was referred to as Jail Square because of the long-standing presence of a jail on the property. In fact, it was the site of the last public hanging in Charlottetown in 1869.
Terry Dunton Stevenson - Wood Wide Webb
Terry’s range of work includes painting, sculpture, printmaking, and exhibit design. She has had several solo exhibitions of her work on P.E.I. and off island. Some of her major public art projects include designing “Our Island Home” Interpretive Center in conjunction with the Confederation Bridge opening and a solo exhibition of large paintings at the Confederation Center. Her work expresses her relationship to this particularly beautiful environment. The gentle and always changing landscape surrounded by the sea continues to be her inspiration.
"In today’s cultural landscape, the World Wide Webb has become a central means of communication for universal and local information and ideas. Like humans, trees also have an intricate ecosystem of communication, the mycelium network. Similar to human communities, trees support each other through passing nutrients and offering protection and help to younger trees.
Trees have historically inspired many unique art and cultural practices. They have lived for hundreds of years; imagine the stories they would tell us if we could understand them."
City Tree #3513 & #3514
Quercus Rubra | Red Oak
Acer Saccarum | Sugar Maple
The two of us are much more connected than we look. Beneath the soil we communicate through a network, that some scientists call the internet of trees or the "wood wide web". Through our roots, we give the fungi sugar that we make through photosynthesis and the fungi help us absorb nutrients from the soil. We use this fungi to communicate with other trees. They act as networks that can carry nutrients between different trees when one of us is sick or hungry. This network even allows us to warn each other of coming danger, such as pests!
Rochford Square
Rochford Square is one of five historic squares in Charlottetown. It was set aside in the design of the revised plan of Charlottetown undertaken by surveyor, Thomas Wright on order of Governor Walter Patterson in 1771. The Square has had various names associated with it, most related to the English ruling and political class. It is located close to the Island’s first Black Community, the Bog, which dates to the early 19th century. One of the most beautiful squares in the city; it has been featured on numerous historical postcards and tourism materials.
Christina Patterson - Boat Loads of History
Christina is a multidisciplinary artist working with sculpture, painting, puppet-making, and art education, with a bold and expressive approach to storytelling through visual art. For 15 years she ran a successful custom cake topper and sculpture business. She has also published numerous children’s books, blending her vibrant artistry with storytelling. She continues to teach private art lessons, inspiring creativity in students of all ages.
"In Boat-loads of History the tree becomes the Island, standing tall, grounded in place, holding the stories of generations. Each boat is a vessel of memory: Indigenous ingenuity, settler resilience, and the industrious age of shipbuilding. Together, they illustrate how water has shaped PEI’s history, and how trees have provided the material and shelter to support those journeys.
Shipbuilding became PEI’s leading industry between 1820 and 1880. Over 900 ships were launched from 22 shipyards, with wooden vessels for export and commerce driving a bustling local economy and lessening the colony’s reliance on Great Britain."
City Tree #3634 Quercus Rubra | Red Oak
I am well known for being PEI’s official tree and can be found on the provincial flag. As a native species I am well adapted to the Island’s climate. I put down strong roots that help me withstand high winds during storms. I grow quickly and, when the conditions are right, can live up to 500 years. My ability to survive storms is one example of why it is important to plant native species that are resilient to the increasingly intense storms the Island will experience as a result of climate change.