{"id":8586,"date":"2025-11-15T13:05:49","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T20:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/?p=8586"},"modified":"2026-02-09T13:08:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T20:08:29","slug":"amir-rahsaz-mess-is-beautiful-small-dams-big-futures","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/2025\/11\/15\/amir-rahsaz-mess-is-beautiful-small-dams-big-futures\/","title":{"rendered":"Amir Rahsaz &#8211; Mess is Beautiful: Small Dams, Big Futures"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"s7\"><span class=\"s5\">My drawings grow from tangled lines and chaotic layers. Up close they seem meaningless, but from a distance hidden forms emerge. The beaver<\/span><span class=\"s5\">, <\/span><span class=\"s6\">notorious as the god of disruption<\/span><span class=\"s6\">, <\/span><span class=\"s5\">creates habitats that appear messy<\/span><span class=\"s5\">.<\/span><span class=\"s5\"> What seems broken is, in fact, vibrantly alive, a quiet resistance to <\/span><span class=\"s5\">humans\u2019<\/span><span class=\"s5\"> need for order. That is where my friendship with the beaver began.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"s7\"><span class=\"s5\">This exhibition marks the subtle return of an ancient bond between humans, beavers, and wetlands<\/span><span class=\"s5\">, <\/span><span class=\"s5\">a kinship long muted by ecological amnesia. Early hints of these future shared landscapes can already be seen in the quiet interactions between unhoused people sheltering in Kelowna\u2019s overlooked wetlands and the beavers who <\/span><span class=\"s5\">share their habitat with<\/span><span class=\"s5\"> them. These encounters offer a glimpse of the more-than-human worlds we may one day rely on, and a reason for hope <\/span><span class=\"s5\">for<\/span><span class=\"s5\"> an uncertain <\/span><span class=\"s5\">climate future<\/span><span class=\"s5\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-teams=\"true\"><script>\/* <![CDATA[ *\/ portfolio_slideshow.slideshows[705] = {\"timeout\":\"4000\",\"autoplay\":\"false\",\"trans\":\"fade\",\"loop\":1,\"speed\":\"400\",\"nowrap\":1}; \/* ]]> *\/<\/script><div id=\"slideshow-wrapper705\" class=\"slideshow-wrapper clearfix portfolio-slideshow-centered\">\n<div id=\"slideshow-nav705\" class=\"slideshow-nav\">\n\t<a class=\"pause\" style=\"display:none\" href=\"javascript:void(0);\">Pause<\/a>\n\t<a class=\"play\" href=\"javascript:void(0);\">Play<\/a>\n\t<a class=\"restart\" style=\"display:none\" href=\"javascript: void(0);\">Play<\/a>\n\t<a class=\"slideshow-prev\" href=\"javascript: void(0);\">Prev<\/a>\n\t<span class=\"sep\">|<\/span>\n\t<a 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class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3991-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3991-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3994-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3994-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3994-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3996-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3996-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_3996-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4000-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4000-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4000-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4002-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4002-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4002-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4004-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4004-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4004-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4006-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4006-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4006-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4008-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4008-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/files\/2026\/02\/DSC_4008-500x500.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px\" \/>\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><!--#slideshow-wrapper--><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My drawings grow from tangled lines and chaotic layers. Up close they seem meaningless, but from a distance hidden forms emerge. The beaver, notorious as the god of disruption, creates habitats that appear messy. What seems broken is, in fact, vibrantly alive, a quiet resistance to humans\u2019 need for order. That is where my friendship with the beaver began. This&#46;&#46;&#46;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":68048,"featured_media":8589,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[937579,937563],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fccs-artwork","category-fina-gallery-exhibitions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/68048"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8586"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8586\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8597,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8586\/revisions\/8597"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/fccsartwork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}