Illustrator / Artist Jane Wolsak works for media outlets as a court artist and her work is being features on its own merits. The Richmond Art Gallery will show a collection of her work Jan 21 to March 30. She has worked recently at the Air India Bombings trial and the whole thing seemed so interesting to me (and Coastal) that I share it with you here.

Cameras are not permitted in Canadian court rooms. This legislative fact creates the need for a full and separate section of art. What we see as the viewer is a genre that exists to meet a hyper specialised need, with its own rules and idiosyncracies. A witness takes the stand for two hours and the pice is detaled and filled with nuance and detail. Another is on the stand for two minutes and we see emotion, action and a more viceral impression. I hope I can see this set.

I imagine her in the back of the courtroom. The dry room accentuating the crackle of the paper and each sound amplified by the institutionalised silence.