Regina artist set to commemorate Canada's 150th

Tucked away in a backyard in Regina's Lakeview neighbourhood, you'll find a sunlit artist's studio.

Inside, Heather Cline is hard at work.

On the walls are dozens of acrylic paintings, telling the story of Canada.

Cline is preparing an exhibit to mark the country's 150th birthday next year.

The exhibit is called Quiet Stories from Canadian Places.

Cline says the title says it all.

"How do we talk about history in small ways, as opposed to those big, flashy moments that we often talk about in Canadian history?"

Cline set out to answer that questionwith her paint brushes.

The collection includes everything from city streets, to farmfields, to northern lakes and rapids.

Most paintings depict scenes, past and present, from across western Canada.

The collection also includes sound.

Many of the paintings were inspired by interviews Cline has conducted, and the audio will be part of the exhibit.

Cline drew from experiences she had during a residency at the Saskatchewan Communications Network (SCN) during which she did interviews about art.

She alsohas had a long love affair with Canadian history.

"I thought I could blend my history with my passion for speaking directly with people and collecting their stories," saidCline.

• Heather Cline's website

She's completed 38 paintings for the exhibit but plans to have at least a dozen more by her end-of-year deadline.

The show will be touring in 2017-2018 through Yorkton, Moose Jaw, Swift Current, Regina, Kelowna,B.C.,Strathcona County in Alberta, Swift Current Sask.and Regina.