The first afternoon of my solo trip to Ottawa I decided to go for a walk along the Ottawa River and I discovered the wonderful Rock Art exhibit at Remic Rapids. I glimpsed a grouping of stones balanced on one another like an inukshuk. Walking further down the river I saw dozens of balanced rock art sculptures.

It turns out that balancing rocks is quite popular. Of course one man’s art is another man’s vandalism. Some people are not keen on disrupting the natural flow and conditions of nature. I mostly agree with them.

However, I must say I did enjoy the imaginative balanced rock displays in Ottawa.

It looked like a village of rock people and a few rather alien looking beings. Have a look at these images of balanced rocks and let me know what you think.

Rock Art Remic Rapids Ottawa

I spent a couple of hours wandering around this outdoor art gallery of balanced rock art created at Remic Rapids area of the Ottawa River.

 

 

The work was created by the participants of the Ottawa BAWI Festival.

BAWI stands for Balanced Art World International and the 2014 festival featured 13 artists from Brazil, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, and USA.

 

 

I loved the sculptures that looked like people and some of the pieces seemed to defy gravity.

I took a closer look to see what sort of tricks they used to balance the rocks.

 

 

It only takes a few tiny stones to balance the rocks and give the magical appearance.

I quite liked the archways built with stones.

 

 

 

 

There was one piece that I spotted with my camera and thought I saw a bright white stone placed on top of the sculpture.

 

 

A closer look and I realized the white stone was really an imposter.

I thought is was funny that I mistook a piece of chewing gum for a pretty white stone.

 

 

I sat by the water and enjoyed a snack while watching the birds and the people go by along the river.

There were plenty of Canada geese, a few ducks, and an occasional sea-gull.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love walking along the water and the rock art display was a wonderful whimsical addition to my stroll along the Ottawa River. First impressions are always strongest and this was my first impression of Ottawa on a sunny August afternoon.