Golden Eagle Art Gallery is pleased to offer an extensive collection of world-renowned artworks by Canadian wildlife artist, Robert Bateman.  World-travelled and well versed, Bateman always tells a great story about each of his creations. Here is what he has to say about this piece:

"It is pretty big for a canary in the coal mine, but that is just what the polar bear has come to symbolize. Of course, canaries were carried into coal mines as an early warning to miners regarding the presence of poison gas. The plight of the polar bear is a far more, all-encompassing symbol for what the actions of mankind are doing to produce climate change. The polar regions are the most sensitive to warming trends. Buildings and pipelines that depend on permafrost are collapsing. Alien and invasive species are moving into the arctic. But the situation for polar bears is very drastic. These animals depend on eating seals in the spring, summer and fall in order to build up a layer of fat, which provides energy and takes them through cold weather and lean times.

Seals must be hunted on the sea ice, which formerly covered vast area of the Arctic Ocean, even in summer. The sea ice is now much thinner and smaller in area due to global warming. Although polar bears are good swimmers, they can never swim up to a seal and catch it. They must hunt from a solid ice platform. Also, with less ice to travel on, the bears must use much more energy to swim from place to place. Their weights are falling, their breeding success is falling and their numbers are falling. These bears are in trouble because of our actions. So are we."

- Robert Bateman