In the 1880s, Canada’s National Dream in the 1880s was unity. The Canadian Pacific Railway was going to become the spine of our new nation. However, the rugged BC part of the railway project was especially problematic so CPR and its contractors hired thousands of “guest workers” from China who were paid less to do tougher jobs in worse conditions than everyone else.

Most immigrants dream of a better life than the one they left. The bottle pickers in East Van seem to be mostly older Asian women; I wonder what their national dream is.

Acrylic on canvas, 8″x 10″
Located at: Private Collection (SOLD)