Three Alberta Artists – Artists Making A Mark through Colour, Shape and Form
Talking to three Alberta Artists for Canada150 Part 3 – Artists ‘Making A Mark’ through Colour, Shape and Form
By Brandy Saturley
This series of interviews highlighting artists in the Alberta Art Scene has been fun to write, I find that an artists’ backstory and character reveal many things about their art and their choices in what they create.
Three Alberta Artists – Chassé Coupé Jeté (Nicole Caron) acrylic on canvas 48″ X 72″
For Part 3 of this series, I want to the highlight the artworks of three Alberta artists; Gordon Milne, Paddy Lamb and Brittney Tough. I decided to group these artists together for one simple reason, they focus on the details and this is apparent in their art. From figurative works to organic, to the commonplace materials of life, these three artists share a connection in the use of positive/negative space to realize their thoughts.
Milne relies on vivid colour and the play between colour and light using geometric shapes, while Lamb focuses on feeling, intuition and mark making. Tough is the first watercolour artist I have chosen to feature and her watercolours, while realistic in appearance, focus clearly on the abstract forms and details of common things.
An accomplished Canadian Artist, Gordon Milne began his early career as a printmaker and this shows in his paintings today. For the last two decades Gordon has enjoyed a unique relationship with the Alberta Ballet where he regularly attends classes to draw these dedicated dancers.
What is your most marked characteristic?
I have a good balance of pragmatic and creative thinking.
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
The natural world and beyond.
Who is your favorite painter?
My favourite artists are Impressionists Cezanne and Gauguin and German Expressionist Erich Hechel.
Who is your favorite musician?
I love music from many different disciplines and to pick a favourite type of music or a musician is impossible. While I’m painting I’m almost always listening to music and, depending on the day, anything could be on.
What is your favorite color?
Every colour is my favourite colour. But I’m more interested in how colours play off one another.
What is your favorite virtue?
Love. If we treat the world around us and the life that resides here with love we can accomplish anything.z
Who are your heroes in real life?
Dalai Lama, Muhammad Ali and Bobby Orr.
As a Canadian artist, have you chosen to respond to Canada150 through your art?
I did. My most recent painting was a landscape …a view of the Niagara River from Queenston Heights. The Canadian Shield that runs through Ontario and Quebec has always been magical for me, especially in the fall. I guess that’s my Canada 150 painting.
What is the best thing about working as a visual artist in Alberta?
Freedom. Not just in Alberta but in all of Canada. Freedom to create without fear of censorship, political sanctions or reprisal. We are so lucky to be in Canada.
You can see more of Milne’s vivid works on his professional website at www.gordonmilneart.com
Three Alberta Artists – The More I Gather, The Less I Know, The More I Gather Charcoal, plywood, 72 x 108, 2015
Paddy Lamb is a sincerely spirited artist hailing originally from Armagh, Northern Ireland. His work is conceptual and strongly influenced by history, memory and social culture, offering a personal narrative concerning human migration and attachment to the land. Lamb is represented by The Front Gallery in Edmonton, Alberta where he just exhibited his solo show, All Bones and Broken Treasures.
An alternate view of Paddy Lamb…
What is your most marked characteristic?
You’d have to ask someone else – my black Irish humour?
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
A connection to the land
Who is your favorite painter?
Too many to choose! Betty Goodwin, Camille Souter, William Scott, Arshille Gorky
Who is your favorite musician?
Tom Waits, Joe Strummer, Nina Simone, Planxty and 100 others in between.
What is your favorite color?
Not sure. I seem to be drawn to the emotional content of red.
What is your favorite virtue?
Honesty
Who are your heroes in real life?
People who share interesting and important work without seeking the limelight.
As a Canadian artist, have you chosen to respond to Canada150 through your art?
No. However, it has certainly influenced the way I’m representing heritage and culture in my work.
What is the best thing about working as a visual artist in Alberta?
The light
Discover more of Lamb’s work on his professional website here: http://paddylamb.com/
Three Alberta Artists – Dots, Watercolour on Paper, 20″ x 20″ Brittney Tough 2017
Calgary artist Brittney Tough is truly a strong spirit, this young artist and advocate is one to watch on the Calgary art scene.
‘Bringing Watercolours Back’, not that they really left, but they haven’t really shared the spotlight owned by oils and more recently acrylics, in terms of the art world.
Tough is an advocate for the art of watercolour and recently curated a group exhibition of some exceptional watercolour artists at the ‘Peanut Gallery’ at John Fluevog Shoes in Calgary. Her meticulous watercolours focus on the details and I was curious to hear more about what moves her brush…
What is your most marked characteristic?
Most people know my watercolour paintings of fabric
or textiles.
What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
Light, Colour & Serendipity!
Who is your favorite musician?
I don’t have a favourite, but out of all the genre’s I listen to,
Country feels like home because it brings me back to my Saskatchewan roots.
What is your favorite color?
I like all colours, especially jewel tones.
What is your favorite virtue?
Authenticity and Honesty
Who are your heroes in real life?
My Mom, Dad and Husband
As a Canadian artist, have you chosen to respond to Canada150 through your art?
Yes, I created a painting of a Hudson Bay Point Blanket
What is the best thing about working as a visual artist in Alberta?
It’s not as saturated a market as some of the bigger centres like Vancouver or Toronto, there is more space and opportunity to develop or create something unique.
Discover more of Tough’s work on her website here: http://brittneytough.com
Whether turned on by the natural world, a connection to our land or colour and light, these three Alberta artists share a connection to the rhythms of the world that surrounds and we as viewers benefit from their artistic voices.
Thank you to Gordon Milne, Paddy Lamb and Brittney Tough for sharing a little more from an alternate angle.
Sincerely Yours,
Brandy Saturley
