Burnaby uses Indigenous art to help residents explore four natural hazards

The City of Burnaby has collaborated with Musqueam artist Kelly Cannell on artwork depicting the city’s four highest-risk hazards: fire, flood, earthquakes and tsunamis. City staff worked with Cannell on designs that tell a visual story about the relationship between land, water and people who have lived with these forces since time immemorial. The original designs will help communicate the City’s emergency management principles and support mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery. Translations in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh sníchim accompany the works, offering an opportunity to learn about the Host Nations’ experiences with and understanding of the hazards.

The earthquake design shows two Thunderbirds rising behind a fractured mountain. Triangular, weaving-inspired patterns on the mountain represent a traditional mountain-and-valley motif. The flood design features two sturgeon swimming through rising water, shown in shifting shades of blue. Sturgeon have long been an important food source for Coast Salish communities, particularly along the Fraser River, and also symbolize wealth, resilience and longevity. The fire artwork depicts an Eagle emerging from flames, reflecting fire’s capacity to destroy, purify or renew. The tsunami image places an Orca, described as a guardian of the sea, within a rising wave, with its pod breaching nearby. In Coast Salish culture, Orcas represent power, protection, family and connection.

The City thanked Cannell for sharing her cultural knowledge, artistic talent and guidance, and acknowledged the Province of British Columbia’s Indigenous Engagement Requirement Funding Program for funding the project. The City said it is committed to advancing reconciliation through positive relationships and continuing this work together. Residents can click each image to learn its meaning and story while exploring local hazards, Indigenous art and culture.

Cannell is a Coast Salish Indigenous artist from the Musqueam Nation in Vancouver, B.C. Her work draws on Musqueam traditions and the natural environment. She has pursued glass art at Pilchuck Glass School in Washington and The Glass Furnace in Istanbul, Türkiye. In 2019, she received a contemporary art scholarship and worked with master glassblowers at Berengo Glass Studio in Murano, Italy. She also studied silk-screen printing and acrylic painting at Emily Carr University. Her public art installations appear across Greater Vancouver and beyond. In 2024, she received the Polygon BC Achievement First Nations Art Award. Additional installations are planned.