Robert Genn
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Robert Douglas Genn (born 15 May 1936) is an artist, who has gained international recognition for his distinctive style, which furthers the tradition of Canadian landscape painting.[1]
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[edit] Life and art
Robert Genn was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada to an English mother and Scottish father. Genn's childhood paintings and drawings included birds, mammals, flowers and fungi, as well as skies and landscapes. He painted his first oil at the age of 16.
He attended Cedar Hill, Doncaster and Cloverdale Schools before graduating from Mt Douglas High. He attended Victoria College (now Victoria University) and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. 1959 – 1961 he attended Art Center School in Los Angeles, California, which was primarily an industrial design school and strongly influenced his ideas of proficient craftsmanship. At this time he was drawing classic cars, and had his first one man show at the Beverly Wiltshire Hotel.
He then began to work in oils and watercolour, but since 1974 has worked almost entirely in acrylic on canvas. He has painted many areas of Canada, particularly its west coast and the Rocky Mountains, as well as in Ireland, France, Japan and New Mexico. 1976 – 86, he produced more than 100 serigraphs (hand-pulled silk screen prints), in up to 15 colours, in editions of 50 to 100 impressions.
He identifies with, and has been compared to the 1920s Canadian Group of Seven (he studied under Lawren Harris of the group).[2] Hambleton Galleries describes his work:
| “ | Assimilating a wide range of influences, from Japanese woodcuts and North West Coast Native art to the Group of Seven, he has kept alive the tradition of Canadian landscape schools in a style that is his alone. Genn bridges the gap between popularity and the elements of good art."[3] | ” |
Genn says of his own approach: "I look for things to inflict my style on."
He runs the Painter's Keys web site, a world-wide artists' community, with his staff and volunteers. This sends out a free twice-weekly newsletter and claims the largest collection of art quotes online with over 5,382 authors quoted.[4] He has been a member of the Board of Directors at Emily Carr College of Art & Design.[2]
He is a lifelong collector of automobiles and vintage boats. He owns a 1938 Bentley, which he drives regularly. He is also a bird watcher, back packer and stamp collector. He is married to Carol Shimozawa (born 1940), an ex airline hostess. They have 3 children, David, a musician with the band 54-40, James, a film maker, and Sara, a painter.
[edit] Writing
As well as essays, he has written three books. In Praise of Painting (1981) is an illustrated autobiography of his early years. The Dreamway (1991) is an account of a meeting with a spiritual seer. The Painter's Keys (1999) is a handbook for painters based on one of his creativity seminars.
[edit] Representation and collections
As of 2007, 155 works have auction sales.[5] His work is represented by 12 galleries in Canada.[6] Solo shows include Jenkins Showler Gallery, White Rock; West End Gallery, Edmonton; The Art Emporium, Vancouver;[2] and Canada House Gallery, Banff, AB.[7] He is one of the 60 elected senior members (SFCA) of the Federation of Canadian Artists (FCA).[1]
His work is in corporate and public collections, including Air Canada, Bank Of Montreal, Canadian General Insurance, Canadian Airlines, Canadian Utilities, The Churchill Corporation, Expo '86, Esso Resources, First City - California II, Highfield Oil & Gas, Molson Brewery Ltd., Montreal Trust, Shell Resources, University of Alberta, Westgate Chevrolet,[2] Glenbow Museum and Government of Belgium.[7]
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ a b "Robert Genn, SFCA", Federation of Canadian Artists. Retrieved 14 February 2007.
- ^ a b c d "Robert Genn" Jenkins Showler gallery. Retrieved 14 February 2007 A fuller list of collections is on this site.
- ^ "Robert Genn", Hambleton Galleries. Retrieved 14 February 2007
- ^ "Resource of art quotations", robertgenn.com. Retrieved 14 February 2007
- ^ "Genn, Robert (1936)", artprice.com. Retrieved 14 February 2007
- ^ "Robert's work is represented by:", robertgenn.com. Retrieved 14 February 2007
- ^ a b "Robert Genn SFCA", Canada House Gallery. Retrieved 14 February 2007.
