Leanne Christie sees the streets of Metro Vancouver in a vastly different way than most commuters.
Instead of hopping in her car every day, the Burquitlam resident grabs her bicycle and travels along the Central Valley Greenway to get to her artist's studio in East Vancouver - a place that she describes as "stimulating."
Now and then, she'll head west on Lougheed Highway "but it's not my favourite" route, she says, referring to the congested scenery.
On her one-hour cycling journey, Christie will take note of the large number of urban landscapes through her artistic lens, focusing in particular on the movement in and around the streets.
Unlike in her native South Africa, where the roads are shared between cars, cyclists, pedestrians and livestock, the streets of Metro Vancouver have a pecking order - with the cyclist ranking near the bottom.
As a result, cyclists have to be cautious at all times as they weave around vehicles and pedestrians, especially during rush hour.
"There's a real ballet that's happening on our streets," she said. "That's what drew me into understanding the actual design of them, realizing how we construct these environments has an impact on how we behave."
With her oil paints, Christie captured the hustle and bustle of Metro's streetscapes in a new collection that is now being exhibited at Coquitlam's Place des Arts.
Titled Le théâtre de la vie publique, or The Theatre of Public Life, the display is being held in conjunction with Festival du Bois, the annual French-Canadian cultural gala happening at Mackin Park this weekend.
Festival organizer Johanne Dumas said she brought Christie on board after seeing her explain her artistic process via YouTube: Christie uses a strong brush to create her images, giving the viewer enough space to complete the picture.
"The larger [pieces] have a tendency to draw you in. When they're in front of you, they dominate the room so you're forced to interact with them as though they're another person," Christie said. "The movement becomes almost a 360-degree experience."
Leanne Christie's Le théâtre de la vie publique will be shown at Place des Arts (1120 Brunette Ave., Coquitlam) until March 8.
