Ken Danby
Ken Danby | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kenneth Edison Danby 6 March 1940 |
| Died | 23 September 2007(aged 67) Algonquin Park,Ontario |
| Known for | Painter |
| Movement | Realism |
| Awards | Order of Canada Order of Ontario |
Ken Danby,CMOOntRCAD.F.A. (6 March 1940 – 23 September 2007) was aCanadianpainter who created highly realistic paintings that study everyday life. His 1972 paintingAt the Crease,portraying a maskedhockeygoalie defending his net, is widely recognized and reproduced in Canada.[1][2]
Early life and education[edit]
Danby was born and grew up inSault Ste. Marie, Ontario.[3][4]He began drawing and painting in high school. He enrolled at theOntario College of Artin 1958.
Career[edit]
Early in his career, Danby experimented with abstract expressionism.[4] In August 1961, Danby participated in the first Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition (TOAE) in the parking lot of the Four Seasons hotel, located at that time on Jarvis Street in Toronto. Danby won the "Best of Exhibition" prize with an untitled abstract, currently in the collection of the artist.
Danby later focused on realism in most of his work, and developed his skill with watercolour. His first solo exhibition in 1964 sold out.[4]
In 1975, Danby was elected a member of theRoyal Canadian Academy of Arts.[5]He designed four coins for the 1976 Montreal Olympics.[6]
He also received the Jessie Dow Prize, the 125th Anniversary Commemorative Medal of Canada, the City of Sault Ste. Marie's Award of Merit and both the Queen's Silver and Golden Jubilee Medals.
In the 1980s, Danby painted a number ofwatercoloursabout theAmerica's Cupand portrayed Canadian athletes at the1984 Winter OlympicsinSarajevo.[4]Danby has served on the governing board of theCanada Counciland as a member of the Board of Trustees of theNational Gallery of Canada.[4]
In 1997, Danby received an Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts fromLaurentian UniversityinSudbury,Ontario.
In 1999 Danby had a studio near Guelph.[7]In 2001, he was vested in both theOrder of Ontarioand theOrder of Canada.
A school on Grange Road inGuelph, Ontariowas named after Danby. Ken Danby Way in his home town of the Sault Ste. Marie includes the Public Library and fittingly, the Art Gallery of Algoma. He was inducted into the Sault'sWalk of Famein 2006.
In 2016, the Art Gallery of Hamilton organized aretrospectiveof Danby's work, entitledBeyond the Crease.[8]
For approximately three decades until his death, Danby lived and painted in a rural property nearGuelph, Ontario,and spent years restoring the historic Armstrong Mill; some of his art work features the property.[9]From November 2016 to January 2017, the Guelph Civic Museum exhibited examples of Danby's work including hisWayne Gretzkyportrait,The Great Farewell.[10]
Death[edit]
On 23 September 2007, Danby collapsed while on a canoe trip inAlgonquin ParknearNorth Tea Lakewith his wife Gillian Danby and friends. The party summoned help, but paramedics were unable to revive him.[4]
Danby is the second famous Canadian artist to die inAlgonquin Park.Tom Thomsondied onCanoe Lakeat the park in July 1917. Canadian writer Blair Frazer also drowned in the park on the Petawawa River's Rollaway Rapids in May 1968.
Family[edit]
The subject matter of many of Danby's early works was found on St. Joseph Island and it was there that he met his first wife Judy Harcourt, whom he married in 1965. Together they purchased a home at Armstrong Mill near Guelph, Ontario, which provided Danby with subject matter from which to gain inspiration.[citation needed]The couple had three sons, who have appeared in Danby's work. They separated in 1980 and divorced in 1984. One of his sons from this marriage isNoah Danby,an actor. Danby's second wife's was Gillian Rumble, to whom he was married until his death.[11]
References[edit]
- ^Sault Ste. Marie: Extraordinary, Not OrdinaryArchived2016-03-04 at theWayback Machine,Hometown Hockey
- ^John Robert Colombo (27 May 2011).Fascinating Canada: A Book of Questions and Answers.Dundurn. pp.97–.ISBN978-1-4597-0028-4.
- ^University of Guelph; Judith M. Nasby (1 January 1980).The University of Guelph Art Collection: A Catalogue of Paintings, Drawings, Prints and Sculpture.The University. pp. 86–87.ISBN978-0-920810-44-6.
- ^abcdef"Surreal death of a Canadian icon".Toronto StarPeter Goddard, Sept. 25, 2007
- ^"Members since 1880".Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. Archived fromthe originalon 26 May 2011.Retrieved11 September2013.
- ^George S. Cuhaj; Thomas Michael (9 April 2012).Canadian Coin Digest.F+W Media. pp. 165–.ISBN978-1-4402-2987-9.
- ^John Robert Colombo (1 May 1999).Mysteries of Ontario.Dundurn. pp. 122–.ISBN978-0-88882-205-5.
- ^"Ken Danby: Good, bad and ugly".Toronto Star,Murray Whyte, Dec. 3, 2016. page E1.
- ^"Restored mill was artist's dream home | TheSpec.com".The Hamilton Spectator.29 April 2011.
- ^"Ken Danby: Five Decades".
- ^Hevesi, Dennis (30 September 2007)."Ken Danby, Prolific Canadian Painter, Dies at 67".New York Times.Retrieved7 May2019.
[Danby] is survived by his wife, the former Gillian Rumble; a brother, Marvin; three sons, Sean, Ryan and Noah; a stepson, Stephan Elmitt; a stepdaughter, Julie Reed; and six grandchildren..
External links[edit]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| People | |
| Other | |
- 1940 births
- 2007 deaths
- 20th-century Canadian painters
- Canadian male painters
- 21st-century Canadian painters
- Painters from Ontario
- Canadian people of English descent
- Members of the Order of Canada
- Members of the Order of Ontario
- People from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
- Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts
- 20th-century Canadian male artists
- 21st-century Canadian male artists