Three Watchmen, New sculpture watches over downtown Ottawa

The Three Watchmen, a 16-foot bronze totem pole by Haida artist Jim Hart, now has a commanding presence on a traffic island at the intersection of St. Patrick Street and Sussex Drive, where it will be seen by – and will watch over – tens of thousands of passersby each day.

Hart’s Watchmen is a quintessentially Canadian work, marrying the ancient customs and motifs of the Haida people of British Columbia to modern materials and styles, and set in a bustling, cosmopolitan location. It will be joined by another Canadian neighbour as soon as the next week or two, when a herd of metal, running horses, by the Saskatchewan artist Joe Fafard, take its place outside the gallery’s front door.

Photo 87, May 2012