John McKinnon

ARTIST

John W. D. McKinnon  C.V.

EDUCATION 

1978:       Advanced Serigraphy, Sculpture: Alberta college of Art, Calgary Alberta.

1975:       Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree: Notre Dame University, Nelson BC.

1974:       Fine Arts Diploma, Sculpture, Serigraphy, Art history majors. Kootenay School of Art, Nelson BC.

1974         Graduate Student Award for 1974

1973         Certificate in Commercial Art, Kootenay School of Art, Nelson, BC

1968         Diploma, L.V. Rodgers Senior Secondary School, Nelson, BC

MAJOR COMMISSION         

2005        Kinetic Sculpture Parade Float. Multi Media. TeckCominco. Trail BC

2004        Marble Monument for Nelson’s First Medical Doctor. L.V.Rogers High school Nelson BC

2004        “Futuristic Bear”.Mt.Baker Secondary School. Cranbrook B.C. Welded Steel, Cable. H.120”.

2003        “Legacy Fountain”. Col. Belcher Extended Care Hospital. Calgary AB. Four stone relief sculptures. Depicting Canada’s World War  contributions.Limestone.  48”x 72”.

2001        Two monumental Grizzly bears in high relief concrete (pre-cast & constructed  Bronze. Revelstoke B.C..

2001        Kinetic Parade Float.  Cominco Ltd.,   Trail,  B.C. multi-media

2000        Colonel Belcher Veterans Hospital.  Calgary, Canada.  Stone Wall Mural.

2000        Private Commission for a Monumental Cemetery Marker in Granite and Bronze.

2000         Nelson And District Credit Union.  Concrete and Granite Street Monument.

1997         Marble and Bronze H. 98" Mount St. Francis Hospital, Nelson, BC

1997        Sculpture depicting St. Francis, To commemorate the work of the Sisters of St. Ann.   

1997        Dancing Dolphins.  Life-size black serpentine.  H. 71" on base.  Bow Valley Dental Clinic, Calgary, AB.

1997        Kinetic Parade Float depicting Cominco's products in everyday living.  Mixed media with
motorized parts on an 8 x 20' trailer.  Cominco Ltd.  Trail, BC.

1996        Freya.  Carved white marble.  Private collection. Through Webster Galleries, Calgary, AB.

1994        Playground Madonna.  Marble, larger than life.  Commissioned through Webster Galleries, Calgary, AB.

1992        Main Stage Pieces for "One Man Symphony" by Gilles Pareneau. Mixed Media. Nelson.  BC

1985        The Monument.  Kootenay Marble.  H. 108" City of Nelson, BC.

1984        The Young Giant.  Kootenay Marble.  H. 108".  City of Nelson, BC.

1983        The Secret.  Kootenay Marble H. 48".  City of Nelson, BC.

1983        The Contemporary Family.  Kootenay Marble.  H. 97" City of Nelson.

1982         Historic Windows. Acrylic on Canvas wall mural. 9 paintings.  Kokanee Dental Building, Nelson, BC.

1981        Industrial Landscape.  Mixed Media (wood, Styrofoam, metal, glue, plastic) 2 pieces. 8' x 36', 8' x l6'.  Alberta Gas Ethylene, Calgary AB.

1980        Between The Fields.  Mixed Media, (gravel, plastic matrix, plywood, glue).  Oakwood Petroleums, Calgary, BC

1980        The Gathering.  Carved Sandstone.  H. 108" on base.  Morris Kowall and Association For the Chahko Mika Mall, Nelson, BC

INSTRUCTING EXPERIENCE

2005        July.  Sir Sanford Fleming College, Haliburton Ontario.  Concrete sculpture.

2003        Multi Media Workshop, Sanikilluak. Nun. Canada.

1995       July, Aug.  Sir Sanford Fleming College, Haliburton Ontario.  Stone sculpture, Concrete sculpture
and Cast metal sculpture.

1994       January term, Arctic College Iqaluit N.T. Instructor in Foundation and Sculpture, Drawing,
Introductory and advanced Printmaking.

1993       Kootenay School of the Arts, Sculpture and Foundation

1993       July, August.  Sir Sanford Fleming College, Haliburton Ontario, Stone Sculpture and
Constructed cement sculpture.

1993       January term, Arctic college lqaluit N.T. Instructor, Printmaking dept., and the Sculpture/Foundation program.

1992      Kootenay School of the Arts, Iniating and designing the Sculpture Foundation Program. 
Instructor in that program.

1992       Stone Sculpture, Kootenay Summer School of the Arts.

1992      Stone Sculpture, and Constructed Cement Sculpture.  Sir Sanford Fleming College

1992       Jan. - Mar., Stone Sculpting and Drawing.  Arctic College, Coppermine N.T.

1991       Sept.-Dec., Stone Sculpting and Drawing.  Arctic College, Coral Harbour, N.T.

1991       Stone Sculpture, Kootenay Summer School of the Arts.  Nelson, BC

1991       Stone Sculpture, Sir Sanford Fleming College, Haliburton, Ont.

1991       March - April, Mentorship Program, Arctic College, my Studio, Nelson, BC

1991       February, Introductory Carving Course, Arctic College, Arctic Bay N.T.

1990       Stone Sculpting Kootenay School of the Arts, Nelson, B.C.

1990       Stone Sculpting, Sir Sanford Fleming College, Haliburton, Ont.

1990       Drawing, Modeling, and Stone Sculpting, Arctic College, Clyde River N.T.

1990       Drawing, Modeling and Stone Sculpting, Arctic College, Arviat, N.T.

1989       Stone Sculpting, Sir Sanford Fleming College.

1988       Marble carving workshop with Economic Development, lqaluit, N.T.

87-89      Supervising and training an assistant apprentice.

1994       Conducted an Apprenticeship program for eight months with two students.

81-82      Assistant Sculpture Instructor, David Thompson University, Nelson, B.C.

1973       Summer Art Workshop, Opportunities for Youth Grant.

Symposia

2005        Nunavut Art Festival, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada.Granite Sculpture for the sculpture garden.

2002        N.a.c.a. Art Festival, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada.Granite and Steel Sculptures.

2001        Granite sculpting Symposium.  Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada,  September.

1999        Our Life in Stone.  Nunavut Arctic Sculpture Symposium. Iqaluit,  Nunavut, Canada. 

1999        Stone in the Galilee.  International Stone Sculpting Symposium.  Israel.  March/April.

EXHIBITIONS

2003       Contor Galleries. Toronto Ont. Canada.“Working the Fringe” A retrospective and contemporary
              exhibition of sculpture and paintings.

2001       Art Walk, Nelson, B.C. September  

2001       Kootenay Gallery, Castlegar, B.C. (Arctic imagery) One man show. Paintings in oil and acrylic.
Prints, sculpture in stone & bronze.

2000       Glacier Jewelers and Art Gallery.  Nelson BC. Sculptures in Stone and Bronze, Acrylic Paintings. 

2000       Exhibition of Contemporary Sculpture 2000.  Miyazaki Airport, Japan. Bronze Sculpture.

1999        Glacier Jewelers and Art Gallery.  Nelson BC. Sculptures in Stone and Bronze.

1998         Webster Galleries.  Calgary, AB.  Figures in Stone

1998         Kootenay Gallery.  Castlegar, BC.  Group showing, "Nelson sculptors in Stone."

1997         Kootenay Gallery.  Castlegar, BC.  Group showing., Concrete sculpture.

1996         Kootenay Gallery.  Castlegar, BC.  Group showing., Concrete sculpture.

1994         National Exhibition Centre, Castlegar, BC.  Group Exhibition

1993         Rails End Gallery, Haliburton Ontario, Group Exhibition.

1993         Gallery of the Kootenays, Nelson, BC Paintings from the North, Oil on Canvas and Screen Prints.

1992         Kalispel Western Art Show, Kalispel Montana, USA.

1992         Gallery of the Kootenays, Northern Images Stone Sculpture.

1992         Rails End Gallery, group show, Haliburton Ontario.

1991         Stone Sculpture, Gallery of the Kootenays, Nelson, BC.

1991         Walsdorf Gallery, Spokane Washington, USA.  Stone Sculpture.

1990         Webster Galleries, Calgary, Alberta.  Stone Sculpture.

1990         Rails End Gallery, Group show, Haliburton Ontario.

1990         Gallery of the Kootenays, "Abstract Bird Series", Stone Sculpture.

1989         Rails End Gallery Group show, Haliburton, Ontario.

1989         Webster Galleries, Calgary Alberta, Stone Sculpture.

1988         Webster Galleries, Calgary Alberta, Stone Sculpture and Serigraph Prints.

1987         Langham Gallery, Kaslo, BC Group Exhibition, Sculpture.

1987         Webster Galleries, Calgary Alberta, Stone Sculpture.

1986         Grand Forks Art Gallery, Group Exhibition, Stone Sculpture.

1986         Webster Galleries, Calgary Alberta, Stone Sculpture.

1985         Pitakvik Gallery, Calgary Alberta, "Images in Stone".

1984         Pitakvik Gallery, Calgary Alberta, Stone Sculpture.

1982         Langham Gallery, Kaslo, BC Sculpture in stone.

1982         Frame Art Gallery, Nelson, BC Sculptures in stone.

1981         Langham Gallery, Kaslo, BC Stone Sculpture and Serigraph Prints.

1981         Worthington Gallery, Nelson, BC Stone Sculpture and Serigraph Prints.

1980         Topham Brown Gallery, Vernon BC Sculpture in mixed media and Serigraph Prints.

1979         Kootenay School of Art Gallery, Nelson, BC Serigraph Prints.

1978         Mount Royal College Gallery, Calgary Alberta, Serigraph Prints.

1978         Clouds and Water Gallery, Calgary Alberta, Serigraph prints.

1976         Kootenay School of the Arts Gallery, Sculpture in Mixed Media and Paintings.

1974         Kootenay School of Art Gallery, Graduation Show.

CORPORATE COLLECTIONS

·        City of Revelstoke, B.C.

·        Mount St Frances Hospital, Nelson,B.C.

·        Steel Case Canada

·        Bow Valley Dental Clinic

·        Alberta Gas Ethylene

·        Oakwood Petroleum

·        Kokanee Dental Building

·        Webster Galleries

·        Kootenay Lake District Hospital

·        Corporation of the City of Nelson

·        University of Victoria

·        British Petroleum

·        Inverness Petroleum

·        Ocolot Petroleum

·        Esso Resources

·        Ernest Edwards Professional Company

·        City of Ma’alot, Israel

·        Nunavut Arts and Crafts Association,  Iqaluit, Nunavut

Personal

·           I am currently living and working in the Kootenay mountains.  My studio is located next to my house on an acreage just outside of  Nelson.  I enjoy the convenience of living and working in the same space.  I have a large well equipped studio and several acres to work in.  I am always in the process of developing and expanding the workspace, which has proved itself suitable not only for my projects, but also for holding workshops.  This year I am in the process of establishing a collectively owned bronze casting facility with a group of professional sculptors from the area.

·          From 1984 to 1992 I owned and operated a graphics and T-shirt screen printing business under the name of Tramline Studio.  I now run a small monument and casting business called Tramline Stone and Casting Works which has been operating successfully for three years.  The stone cutting technology has contributed greatly toward my sculpting objectives.

Statement 

          For the past three decades, I have been blessed with this opportunity to pursue my
            life’s  dream to be an artist.   I like to work in a variety of media but have
            dedicated most of my attention to sculptures, with my priority choice being stone. 
            There is something about the indomitable mass of stone that has for me been a
            metaphor for the idea of one’s physical presence on this plane of  existence. 
            Through this medium I can create an alchemy that connects the antiquity
            of the world to the future just  by altering the surface of the material.

            I also like to work in a variety of other media.  To me it is an extension of the idea
            of using a variety of tools, with each medium serving a specific function in my
            work.  My inclination toward working in this fashion has allowed me to be
            spontaneous with my ideas, and develop them with a minimum of compromise to
            my original inspiration.  I think this approach has provided me with a more
            rounded artistic experience.

        To me, art is self expression, communication, a reaching out into one's environment.  Perhaps an interpretation
        of one's environment from a perspective of nature, or from a social or political perspective.  Sometimes,
        making that connection between the tangible world we exist in physically and the metaphysical world in
        which we also exist and express through the use of archetypal images and symbols.  Ultimately
        though, art is merely the documentation of one's existence. A day by day diary.  The by product of
        one's experiences and growth. Every discovery or new insight weaves its way into the fabric
        of the development of ones life.  It is interesting to look back on a progression of ideas and see
        the developments that have taken place, and notice how these changes have found their way into
        becoming a significant part of my life.

        My art has many aspects and levels of perception. It is something that is precise
        and defined, and at the same time demands an absolute freedom. It is for me the
        great metaphor for life. "Line creates life, and form creates feeling". With these
        two aspects functioning in harmony, there is a dynamic in the art. With harmony,
        there is life.

johnmckinnon@shaw.ca   250-352-5633