Karen Yurkovich: Functionally Extinct

Drawing upon past projects with natural history museums, Vancouver artist Karen Yurkovich uses abstract imagery and disintegrating landscape forms to examine the shifting nature-culture interface. In her artist’s statement, Yurkovich tells us that “functionally extinct” refers to “a species whose population is so reduced that itno longer plays a signifi cant role in ecosystem function.” She extends this defi nition to her own creative practice of painting, which she sees as “teetering on the edge of functional extinction.”