Sea The Sky
The Art
Suspended above the forest floor along a ridgetop with sweeping views of South Georgian Bay, Sea the Sky invites visitors to walk beneath a flowing school of driftwood fish moving as though carried by the currents of Georgian Bay itself. The installation transforms the trail into an underwater passageway, encouraging visitors to experience the landscape from a different perspective — as if walking along the bottom of an ancient inland sea.
The piece draws inspiration from the geological history of South Georgian Bay and the Niagara Escarpment. Millions of years ago, this region lay beneath shallow seas that shaped the limestone cliffs and rolling uplands surrounding the Highlands today. The installation also celebrates the living waterways that continue to define the region.
Streams flowing from the Escarpment, including nearby Batteaux Creek, serve as important spawning grounds for trout and salmon that journey upstream from Georgian Bay. The suspended fish symbolize this enduring ecological connection between the Bay, the forests, and the headwaters of the Highlands.
Each fish is individually torched using pyrography techniques — Alexandra’s predominant artistic medium. Beyond helping preserve the driftwood, the burning process deepens the texture and contrast of the wood, allowing the fish silhouettes to stand out dramatically against the changing sky above. Just as the sky gives Georgian Bay its shifting colours and moods, sunlight and weather continuously reshape the visual experience of the installation itself.
The piece draws inspiration from the geological history of South Georgian Bay and the Niagara Escarpment. Millions of years ago, this region lay beneath shallow seas that shaped the limestone cliffs and rolling uplands surrounding the Highlands today. The installation also celebrates the living waterways that continue to define the region.
Streams flowing from the Escarpment, including nearby Batteaux Creek, serve as important spawning grounds for trout and salmon that journey upstream from Georgian Bay. The suspended fish symbolize this enduring ecological connection between the Bay, the forests, and the headwaters of the Highlands.
Each fish is individually torched using pyrography techniques — Alexandra’s predominant artistic medium. Beyond helping preserve the driftwood, the burning process deepens the texture and contrast of the wood, allowing the fish silhouettes to stand out dramatically against the changing sky above. Just as the sky gives Georgian Bay its shifting colours and moods, sunlight and weather continuously reshape the visual experience of the installation itself.
The Artist
Alex Glueckler is a multidisciplinary artist, designer, and craftsperson whose work explores the relationship between nature, reclaimed materials, and immersive environmental experiences. Through her creative practice, she combines organic forms with thoughtful craftsmanship to create installations that encourage reflection, curiosity, and connection to place.
Based in South Georgian Bay, she draws inspiration from forests, waterways, and natural processes. Alexandra’s work often transforms salvaged materials through the use of pyrography and sculptural design, creating pieces that feel both contemporary and deeply rooted in the natural world.
Find out more about Alexandra's art: www.fireandflora.co
Sponsored by TOJA GRID
Building the frame structure for the latest Highlands Art & Tree Trail installation was made dramatically easier thanks to TOJA Grid by Toja Living, a Canadian company known for its modular pergola brackets and DIY outdoor structure systems.
Designed to simplify the construction of durable outdoor spaces, the system allowed the structure to come together quickly, accurately, and with far less complexity than traditional framing methods. Even trail builder Shield Contracting was impressed by how intuitive and efficient the TOJA Grid system was to work with in the field — especially given the challenging terrain and custom nature of the installation.
