PETRICHOR

A reflection of loss, renewal, and the landscapes within…

Petrichor explores the emotional tension between memory and landscape. Each piece reflects a deeply personal journey, inviting viewers to step into spaces where the external world and the inner self converge.

In Petrichor, oil painter Liz Haney presents a series of ten new works reflecting on the increasingly volatile state of our environment. Through dramatic colour, layered texture, and nuanced blurring, Haney captures both the sublime and destructive forces of forest fires and floods, creating a visual language that speaks to the tension between beauty and loss.

Beyond the visual, Petrichor expands into a multisensory experience. Variations in mark-making suggest rhythm, movement, and vibration, bringing a sense of sound into the paintings themselves. This idea was extended into the exhibition space, where subtle scents of moss and pine and nature-based soundscapes paired with each painting helped create an atmosphere that encouraged viewers to slow down and engage intuitively with the work.

A lifelong observer of the landscape, Haney’s connection to her subject deepened following the 2023 wildfires in Quebec, when prolonged smoke pollution transformed her daily reality. That experience sparked an urgent need to translate emotion into form and to explore themes of adaptability, resilience, and the interconnectedness of human and ecological systems.

The exhibition became a relaxed gathering point for the neighborhood, welcoming friends, neighbors, and people encountering the work for the first time. By engaging multiple senses, Petrichor felt approachable and inclusive—inviting visitors to linger, talk, and connect without requiring prior knowledge. Named for the scent of the earth after rain, Petrichor holds space for both renewal and mourning, offering a shared, reflective experience of how we live within and respond to a changing natural world.