Tag Archives: Art

Artist to Appreciate: Christopher Walker

April 26, 2014 By in Art Tags: , , , , , , , , 66 Comments

Christpher Walker -- Devotion

Christopher Walker, Devotion (2008)

Christopher Walker is a Canadian contemporary realist painter whose subject matter reflects a distinct sense of the grand and the awe-inspiring as well as his wide ranging travels throughout many remote areas of Canada.  His style is evocative of the work of Alex Colville and Andrew Wyeth, among others.  Walker’s artistry is truly stunning and beautiful!

Christopher Walker -- Acceptance

Christopher Walker, Acceptance (1993)

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Christopher Walker -- Canadiana

Christopher Walker, Canadiana (2013)

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Christopher Walker -- Fortitude

Christopher Walker, Fortitude (2008)

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Christopher Walker -- Interface

Christopher Walker, Interface (2007)

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Christopher Walker -- Patience

Christopher Walker, Patience (2009)

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Christopher Walker -- Transient

 

 Christopher Walker, Transient (2007)

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More of Walker’s gorgeous work can be seen at his website and at the White Rock Gallery site.

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Similar posts on O’Canada:

— In Memory of Alex Colville

— Artist to Appreciate:  Mary Pratt

— Artist to Appreciate:  Christopher Pratt

— Sean Yelland’s “Distant” and “Stop Everything”

— Artist to Appreciate: Michael E. Glover

Moonlit Views of Yesteryear Canada

March 9, 2014 By in Art, History, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , , , , 29 Comments

Chateau-Frontenac----Moody

While thumbing through a large group of vintage Canadian postcards at a local antique shop a half-dozen or so among the thousand-plus cards stood out because each featured a highly stylized moonlight view of their subjects, giving each card a dark and moody feel.  Most were from about 1906 to 1908, with one as late as 1919, and all but one were marked as being printed by Valentine & Sons, a noted Scottish postcard publisher of the time with offices in Toronto and Montreal.  A little online research revealed that the cards were collotype photographs taken in daylight with a full moon, clouds and lighting effects layered on top, after which the images were hand-tinted.

Bear-River----Moody-Mag

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Greenbank----Moody

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Halifax----Moody-Mag

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NB----Moody-Mag

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Rideau----Moody

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St.-James-Cathedral----Mood

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Windsor-Hotel----Moody

Similar posts on O’Canada:

•  Vintage Postcards:  Canadian Churches

•  Vintage Canadiana:  Canadian Home Journal

•  Vintage Canadian Apple Crate Labels

Artist to Appreciate: Christopher Pratt

March 8, 2014 By in Art, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , 33 Comments

C. Pratt, Placentia Bay in Winter (1995)

Christopher Pratt, Placentia Bay Boat in Winter (1995)

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Christopher Pratt is justly considered one of Canada’s most significant living artists.  His realistic art focuses on Atlantic Canada, particularly his home province of Newfoundland and Labrador.  Pratt’s compositions are usually quite spare and many convey a notable sense of melancholy and reflective quietude, whether of outport cottages and other simple structures with strong architectural lines or his sweeping coastal landscapes. While his style is distinctively his own, the subdued moodiness of Pratt’s work brings to mind that of Edward Hopper and the realist paintings of Alex Colville, another Canadian master who taught at New Brunswick’s Mount Allison University at a time when Pratt was a student there.   Mount Allison is also where Pratt met his now former wife, Mary West Pratt, an equally noteworthy Canadian painter in her own right.

In 2013, the always brilliant Canadian publisher, Firefly Books, released Christopher Pratt: Six Decades, which provides a comprehensive overview of this artist’s work.  (Coincidentally, in 2013 another excellent Canadian publisher, Goose Lane Editions, went to press with Mary Pratt, a beautiful retrospective of Mary Pratt’s amazing artistry.)

C. Pratt, Blue Iron Door (2013)

Christopher Pratt, Blue Iron Door (2013)

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C. Pratt, Woman at Dresser (1964)

Christopher Pratt, Woman at Dresser (1964)

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C. Pratt, House in August (1968)

Christopher Pratt, House in August (1968)

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C. Pratt, Ingornachoix Bay -- Long Shed (2007)

Christopher Pratt, Ingornachoix Bay — Long Shed (2007)

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C. Pratt, Spring Coming Over Trout River (2009)

Christopher Pratt, Spring Coming Over Trout River (2009)

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Similar posts on O’Canada:

•  Artist to Appreciate:  Mary Pratt

•  In Memory of Alex Colville

•  Artist to Appreciate:  Michael E. Glover

Artist to Appreciate: Louis Helbig

February 15, 2014 By in Alberta, Art, Ontario Tags: , , , , , , , 15 Comments

Highway 53 Bitumen Slick

Louis Helbig, Highway 53 Bitumen Slick, Alberta (2009)

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The aerial photography of Ottawa’s Louis Helbig provides a reflective pause for the disquieting natural and industrial vistas that are this artist’s principal subject matter.  Many of his images possess an abstract quality and bring to mind the similarly striking industrial landscapes of fellow Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky.

Below are a few of Helbig’s stunning images.  More of his impressive photography can be found at his homepage here.

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Alluvial Fan

Louis Helbig, Alluvial Fan, Alberta (2009)

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Sulfur PileLouis Helbig, Sulfur Pile, Alberta (2011)

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ATV Tracks in Frozen Snow

Louis Helbig, ATV Tracks in Frozen Snow, Quebec (2011)

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Pumping Vessel

Louis Helbig, Pumping Vessel, Alberta (2009)

Image Credits: Louis Helbig

Other Posts About Notable Canadian Photographers:

•  Edward Burtysnky and Industrial Landscapes

•  Todd McLellan: Taking Things Apart

•  Manu Keggenhoff’s Photography of the North

•  A Virtual Trip to the Yukon

•  Jerry Kobalenko’s Beautifully Rendered Arctic Eden

•  Jim Shaugnessy and Canadian Railroad Photography

Artist to Appreciate: Mary Pratt

December 14, 2013 By in Art, Books / Literature, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia Tags: , , , , , , , , , 19 Comments

Mary Pratt, Cold Cream (1983)

Mary Pratt, Cold Cream (1983)

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Born in Fredericton, New Brunswick and living in St. John’s, Newfoundland for most of her life and career,  Mary Pratt is one of Canada’s realist painters of the highest order.  Her subject matter ranges from luminescent jelly jars and other domestic still lifes to pensive nudes and fleeting dramatic moments (such as a fire blazing in a steel barrel).  Pratt’s artwork is as much about the intricate interplay of light and color on her subjects as anything else.

In conjunction with a traveling exhibition of Pratt’s paintings organized by the The Rooms of Newfoundland and Labrador (May – Sept. 2013) and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (starting Oct. 2014), Goose Lane Editions recently published a beautiful new book, Mary Pratt (2013), which showcases much of her work.  The book features a wide selection of her paintings as well as remarks by Pratt herself and thoughtfully written essays by several leading Canadian art writers.

Mary Pratt,Tied Boat (1980)
Mary Pratt, Dishcloth On Line #2 (1997)
Mary Pratt, Fire Barrel (1981)
Mary Pratt, Girl In My Dressing Gown (1981)
Mary Pratt, Jelly Shelf (1999)
Mary Pratt, Red Currant Jelly (1972)
Mary Pratt, Smears of Jam, Lights of Jelly (2007)
Mary Pratt, Supper Table (1969)
Mary Pratt, This Is Donna (1987)
Mary Pratt, A Brighter Balance (2004)
Mary Pratt (Image by Ned Pratt)
Mary Pratt (Goose Lane Editions 2013)

Remembrance Day and the Home Front

November 10, 2013 By in Art, History, Society Tags: , , , , , , , , 12 Comments

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Red poppies already adorn many a chest and collar on each side of the border as a lead up to Monday when the U.S. marks Veteran’s Day and Canada observes Remembrance Day.   Both occasions mark and honor the difficult sacrifices made by our respective veterans in service to their country.  These vintage wartime posters from World War I remind us that the reach and privations of the war that prompted the first Remembrance Day extended, as most wars do, to the home front as well.

(Poppy Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Halloween Haunts: Joe’s Scarecrow Village

October 30, 2013 By in Art, Humor, Nova Scotia Tags: , , , , , , , , , , 10 Comments

awScarecrow4

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Several years ago, while winding through the gorgeous scenery that graces Cape Breton, Nova Scotia’s Cabot Trail we came across a head-turning collection of freaky scarecrows begging to be photographed.  This was Joe’s Scarecrow Village, a homegrown roadside attraction in Cap LeMoine with great character that was originally created by local Joe Delaney to ward animals away from his planting field. Halloween seems a fitting time to share these colorful oddities.  Sadly, this piece of rustic Canadiana has since been closed.

More info on Joe’s Scarecrow Village can be found here.

Vintage Canadian Apple Crate Labels

October 17, 2013 By in Art, British Columbia, Food / Drinks, Nova Scotia Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 31 Comments

Ogopogo Apples

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In the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia and many places in between, Fall is harvest time from coast to coast for Canada’s rich variety of apples.    That variety is also reflected in the colorful artistry of numerous vintage apple crate labels — such as the incredible OgoPogo one above — which recently caught my eye and which I thought would be worth collecting here to share.  (You can click through the slides below.)

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Artist to Appreciate: Michael E. Glover

October 6, 2013 By in Alberta, Art, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Northwest Territories, Ontario, Saskatchewan Tags: , , , , , , , , , 24 Comments
Michael Glover, End of the Line, Hines Creek, Alberta (2010) 2

Michael Glover, End of the Line, Hines Creek, Alberta (2010)

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Michael Glover’s realist artwork conveys a deep appreciation for the stark and forlorn rural and industrial landscapes that hint at the hardscrabble existence of the hardy folks who settled such remote areas long ago.  His sense of place is strong — even to the point that the titles of his paintings denote the specific towns depicted — and I like that much of his work focuses on the often overlooked Canadian heartland regions of Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta.  However, Glover is the rare Canadian painter whose work embraces images of virtually all the country’s provinces, reflecting his wide travels across Canada’s vast expanse.

Michael Glover, In The Heartland, Aneroid, Saskatchewan (2006)

Michael Glover, In The Heartland, Aneroid, Saskatchewan (2006)

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Michael Glover, On the Crowsnest Line, Pincher Station, Alberta (2012)

Michael Glover, On the Crowsnest Line, Pincher Station, Alberta (2012)

Michael Glover, Forgotten Timber, Wawa, Ontario (2007)

Michael Glover, Forgotten Timber, Wawa, Ontario (2007)

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Michael Glover, Once Proud, Still Strong, Fredericton, N.B. (2004)

Michael Glover, Once Proud, Still Strong, Fredericton, N.B. (2004)

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Michael Glover, Standing Proud in the Eleventh Hour, Mossleigh, Alberta (2006)

Michael Glover, Standing Proud in the Eleventh Hour, Mossleigh, Alberta (2006)

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Michael Glover, The Final Days of Fleming, Fleming, Saskatchewan (2012)

Michael Glover, The Final Days of Fleming, Fleming, Saskatchewan (2012)

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Michael Glover, Alexandria Falls, Enterprise, NWT (2012)

Michael Glover, Alexandria Falls, Enterprise, NWT (2012)

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Michael Glover, Nightstop, Grenfell, Saskatchewan (2012)

Michael Glover, Nightstop, Grenfell, Saskatchewan (2012)

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Glover has a much-deserved exhibition opening in late November 2013 at the Art Gallery of Northumberland (Ontario), appropriately entitled “The Lost and Forgotten: Canada’s Vanishing Landscape.”   More of Glover’s exceptional art may also be viewed at his website here and at the Quinn’s of Tweed (Ontario) gallery.

Image Credits:  Michael E. Glover

Canada Dry’s Cross-Cultural Appeal

September 18, 2013 By in Art, Food / Drinks, Ontario, Society Tags: , , , , , , , , , , 17 Comments

Canada Dry -- Sparkling

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I remember as a child that we would drink Canada Dry Ginger Ale about as often as we drank Coca Cola.  Originated in Canada and adopted by America, the Canada Dry brand serves as a cultural bridge between our two countries.  Canada Dry Ginger Ale was created in 1890 by John J. McLaughlin, an Ontario pharmacist, and for a few decades thereafter this effervescent beverage was mainly a Canadian regional drink.  (Coincidentally, Coca Cola was also concocted a few years before in 1886 by a pharmacist, John Pemberton.)  Once its popularity spread to the U.S. around the 1920s, it eventually became a major American brand as attested by this assortment of vintage advertisements.

Stanley Park Totem Poles

September 14, 2013 By in Art, British Columbia, History Tags: , , , , , , , , , , 24 Comments
Chief Skedans Mortuary Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver

Chief Skedans Mortuary Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver

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Stanley Park is a beautiful, peaceful greenspace on a sprawling peninsula in the heart of bustling Vancouver.  The Park’s collection of native American totem poles is eye-catching and conjures marvelment and reverence at the creativity of the people of the Pacific Northwest that made these exquisite carvings.

In these photos from a trip there not long ago it was challenging to separate the poles from the surrounding trees so these don’t do justice to the majesty of these enduring artifacts.

Sky Chief Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver

Sky Chief Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver

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Oscar Maltipi Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver
Close Up, KAKASO’LAS Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver
Close Up, Thunderbird House Totem Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver
KAKASO’LAS Pole (in foreground), Stanley Park, Vancouver
Thunderbird House Totem Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver
Close Up, Chief Wakas Pole, Stanley Park, Vancouver

In Memory of Alex Colville

July 23, 2013 By in Art, Nova Scotia, Ontario Tags: , , , , , , , , , 21 Comments
Alex Colville in 1945

Alex Colville in 1945

Yesterday, upon coming upon the notice in the NY Times of Alex Colville’s recent passing, I realized that Canada lost a giant of the art world.  Colville’s brand of realism conveyed mystery and left much to the viewer. His striking composition “Horse and Train” is a perfect example of this.   Its uneasy turbulence is illuminated by Colville’s explanation that his inspiration derived from a line in a Roy Campbell poem:  “Against a regiment I oppose a brain/ And a dark horse against an armoured train.”  Thus, did the Toronto-born and Nova Scotia-raised Colville movingly represent the struggle and strength of the individual against the mainstream.  Fantastic!

That and several of his other works are below.

"Horse and Train" by Alex Colville

Horse and Train (1954)

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Ocean Limited

Ocean Limited (1962)

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Soldier and Girl at Station (1953)

Soldier and Girl at Station (1953)

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To Prince Edward Island (1965)

To Prince Edward Island (1965)

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Embarkation (1994)

Embarkation (1994)

Edward Burtynsky and Industrial Landscapes

June 29, 2013 By in Art, Ontario Tags: , , , , , , , , 13 Comments
E. Burtynsky -- Nickel Tailings No. 31, Sudbury, Ontario (1996)

E. Burtynsky — Nickel Tailings No. 31, Sudbury, Ontario (1996)

The Summer issue of Canadian Art just arrived and includes a feature (written by Daniel Baird) about recent projects of Toronto photographer Edward Burtynsky.  Looking at Burtynsky’s oversized images of industrial landscapes, it’s difficult not to appreciate their sublime beauty while also being astounded by the impact humans have on the environment.

More about Burtynsky and his amazing work can be seen at his website and at the just-opened exhibition “Edward Burtynsky: The Landscape That We Change” at Kleinburg, Ontario’s McMichael Canadian Art Collection Gallery, which runs through September 29, 2013.

E. Burtynsky -- Inco-Frod Open Pit, Sudbury, Ontario (1985)

E. Burtynsky — Inco-Frod Open Pit, Sudbury, Ontario (1985)

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E. Burtynsky -- Oxford Tire Pile No. 9a, Westley, California (1999)

E. Burtynsky — Oxford Tire Pile No. 9a, Westley, California (1999)

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E. Burtynsky -- Rock of Ages No. 1, Barre, Vermont (1991)

E. Burtynsky — Rock of Ages No. 1, Barre, Vermont (1991)

Laurence Hyde’s Southern Cross

June 8, 2013 By in Art, Books / Literature, Ontario Tags: , , , , , , , 5 Comments
Southern Cross -- Block 29

Southern Cross — Block 29

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In 2007 Ontario’s Firefly Books published Graphic Witness: Four Wordless Graphic Novels, which features four  exceptional examples of the early graphic novel form and the beautiful artistry of its practitioners.   Among these is Canadian Laurence Hyde’s masterful Southern Cross from 1951.  Through a series of 120 striking wood engravings Hyde shares a story that reflects on the impact of nuclear testing on the simple way of life that then existed on Bikini Atoll in 1946.

Southern Cross -- Block 23

Southern Cross — Block 23

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Southern Cross -- Block 27

Southern Cross — Block 27

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Southern Cross -- Block 107

Southern Cross — Block 107

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Graphic Witness Cover

Todd McLellan: Taking Things Apart

June 1, 2013 By in Art, Ontario Tags: , , , , , , , 13 Comments
Todd McLellan -- Push Mower Apart

Todd McLellan — Push Mower Apart

Toronto-based photographer Todd McLellan loves to take apart machines — especially more solidly built older ones — and capture all the related parts in  striking photographic compositions.  I really like these — they appeal to both an aesthetic and design sensibility as well as my penchant for building things.   See more of his photos and other work on his website here.

Todd McLellan -- Bike Apart

Todd McLellan — Bike Apart

Todd McLellan -- Typewriter Apart

Todd McLellan — Typewriter Apart

Todd McLellan -- Chainsaw Apart

Todd McLellan — Chainsaw Apart

Wall Art a la Montreal

May 17, 2013 By in Art, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , , , , 25 Comments
aDSC_7491

Jazz Saints

Quebec Month / Installment 11

Not long ago I posted some pics I took of graffiti in Montreal.  Painted wall art is another form of creative expression that is different from graffiti, but sometimes in only subtle ways.  I’m sure someone has worked out the technical distinction between such things, but however these art forms are categorized, Montreal is a rich showcase for a great deal of both (as well as other street art variants — such as kinetic art, elaborate light shows and light sculptures — that I could not readily capture).

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Painted Cargo Container

Cardboard Totem Pole Wall Art

May 12, 2013 By in Art, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , 8 Comments

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Quebec Month / Installment 7

I have some other Montreal wall art still to share, but, at the moment, I’ve singled out the above piece because of the unusual medium — painted cardboard — used by its creator.  By the time I came upon this contemporary take on a traditional Pacific Northwest totem pole, the work had seen better days but it still held up quite well.  The brightly colored eagle, beaver and cow (a modern update for a totem pole!)  are set off nicely by the intricate carvings in the corrugated cardboard.

Montreal as Muse for Jeremy Price

May 12, 2013 By in Art, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , 3 Comments
Jeremy-Price----St.-Henri

Jeremy Price, “St. Henri”

Quebec Month / Installment 6

Although Jeremy Price is originally from Ontario and studied art in both Ontario and British Columbia, much of his body of work is a modern impressionist take on Montreal, a city where he now lives and which serves as his muse.  With precise painterly brush strokes, he nicely captures the character of that busy city and explores the every day goings on within its many quaint neighborhoods.   “St. Henri” (above) splashes dappled city lights across its canvas, while “Rink Maintenance” (below) depicts an annual rite that is quintessentially Canadian.

Jeremy-Price----Rink-Maintenance

Jeremy Price, “Rink Maintenance”

More of Price’s terrific takes on Montreal can be seen at his cjeremyprice website here and his WordPress blog, cjeremyprice.

Montreal’s Vibrant Walls of Graffiti

May 9, 2013 By in Art, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , 6 Comments

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Quebec Month / Installment 5

Wow!  Montreal has a lot of amazingly cool graffiti — and not just the quickly dashed out monochromatic tag variety.  In that city, wielders of spray paint have taken the graffiti form to a more vibrant, artistic level that brightens rather than blightens.  Here are some of these artfully done works that caught my eye as I recently roamed the city’s streets.

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[Click on Image to Enlarge]

Isabelle Tremblay and The Mysterious Deep

May 1, 2013 By in Art, Quebec Tags: , , , , , , Leave a comment

Isabelle Tremblay -- Let It Flow Through the Heart 1

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Quebec Month / Installment 1

The work of Quebec artist Isabelle Tremblay is dreamily mysterious and the intense faces of her child-like subjects hint at deep questions.   More of her art can be seen at Montreal’s Galerie MX.

One With Life

One With Life

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