Jackie & Shadow

Wildlife livestreams have become unexpected civic spaces at a time when traditional public life feels thin. The Big Bear Valley eagle cam shows how thousands gather not for argument or entertainment, but to quietly witness two eagles—Jackie and Shadow—build, endure weather, and share a nest. This shared watching turns the nest into a public observatory, a place where strangers practice collective attention. Jackie embodies presence; Shadow shapes meaning through contrast. Their interplay becomes a living chiaroscuro, reminding us that public life depends on both what we illuminate and what we allow to remain still or unseen. These cams create a form of democratic intimacy. They ask nothing, sell nothing, and demand no stance. They simply open a window onto a shared world, transforming a nest into a commons and a camera into a civic instrument. Viewers become a temporary public, connected through quiet observation. Attention can be a civic act: Shared watching rebuilds a sense of public togetherness. Silence has social value: Not all participation requires speech or debate. Contrast reveals meaning: Jackie and Shadow show how presence and absence shape understanding. Commons can be digital: A livestream can function like a public square. Observation fosters stewardship: Seeing nature as shared inheritance encourages care rather than conflict.
2026, A renewal in the making
2014, Starbucks Coffee Cup Art Project, 2026
As has been tradition since 2020, paint was added to Skaters on Ice—January 1, 2026—beside the ice rink on the quiet back lawns of the Alberta Legislature. An eagle in flight was added on the backside, a gesture of lift in a heavy season.
XLife
 Birds of a Feather Art Project
Art is Freedom
Pop pop Dazzled

2026-02-01: Pop Dazzled by Everyday: McJesus JINX / Game Night in the ICE District — Wild fans caught the spark of my Not a Bystander vision on anger, hockey‑fan violence, and bullying. They felt it—just not enough to trade me the jersey I hoped to wear inside the Legislature for Black History Month. Earlier, seven kilometres on foot led me into a First Nations prayer circle—voices calm with no snowfall, only ICE, carrying deep worries for Alberta’s future. So there I was, between hockey fans, ceremonial prayers, before the marble halls of power—feeling the ICE effects of Minnesota and the quiet question of who are we becoming like? Pop‑pop dazzled by the everyday and then some..🍁US  Birds of a Feather Art Project: Faith, Democracy, and Nature. Art is Freedom, Listen... Continued
Left Stage, Exit Right, Free From ARTifICE
85 Seconds to Doomsday
Art is Freedom
February is 
Black History Month
X
Y?
🍁US: Art Show & Tell, of a Point of Order, add a little ice cream, my just reward. A young woman, lingering with a tattooed crowd in downtown Edmonton near the library, complimented my artwork. After finishing my rapidly melting ice cream in the 24°C heat, I walked over to her gang to show the backside, titled Disorder. Suddenly, a young man lunged at me. "Get the f*** away from here!" he snapped. Before I could react, the group's matriarch—Mama Tattoo—spoke up. "I like your painting," she said, her voice steady. The young man’s demeanor shifted. He looked at the artwork again, his expression softening. "That's an amazing piece of art," he admitted. Continued...

​Doug Brinkman