Ben Fox was born and raised on Vancouver Island and has been painting and making art his entire life. He studied filmmaking at the Vancouver Film School in 1999, and then worked for several years on film productions in Toronto, as well as documentaries filmed in Mozambique and the Central coast of BC. Filmmaking sparked a serious interest in Documentary photography, which has guided and informed his art practice – eventually leading to the paintings which he creates today. The work is inspired by the wild and expansive British Columbia locations that Ben has spent extensive periods immersed in – sketching, painting and making photographs. Ben has lived in a remote cabin in Haida Gwaii and spent months of his life on sailboats exploring the Great Bear Rainforest, creating art and gathering material for future work. These days, many of his paintings are imagined spaces that could very well exist somewhere on this vast coast, and are an expression of his deep commitment to translating his experience and vision of the world around him into art. The series “Imaginary Beaches” was conceived during a time when staying home was necessary and the idea of travel could only be realized through imagination, and memory. It reflects a yearning to visit some of the magical, unique beach spaces that I have been lucky enough to spend time in and are in abundance in BC.