Beta Cottage refers to a period of work developed between 2009 and 2017 on Galiano Island, British Columbia. During this time the artist converted a small adjacent boathouse into a working studio for painting and printmaking.

The studio was established with the guidance of artist and educator Kit Grauer, whose mentorship during these years provided both practical and conceptual support. An early twentieth-century etching press formerly housed at the University of British Columbia was relocated to the studio and rebuilt for use in both relief and intaglio processes. The press had previously been used by artists including Gordon Smith and Sam Black, carrying with it a lineage of printmaking within the region.

The work produced at Beta Cottage spans etching, relief printing, drawing, painting, assemblage, and photography. Compared to other parts of the practice, these works tend to be more abrupt in execution and direct in tone. They reflect the conditions of the studio itself — a small coastal structure shaped by weather, tide, and the rhythms of island life.

Many of the works draw on maritime imagery and folklore, as well as the personal experience of living and working near the ocean. The colors red and green appear frequently, referencing the navigational markers of port and starboard. Within the work, these signals often function as quiet indicators of movement, suggesting arrival, departure, and orientation within a larger landscape.

For the artist, Beta Cottage represents both a physical place and a formative period of experimentation. The studio provided the space where several ideas about process, material, and image-making first began to take shape.




Joseph, Releif, 2013
Relief print on paper
4 x 6 in. (plate)