DENNIS EVANS ART STUDIOS
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About the Artist: Dennis Gordon Evans
Dennis Gordon Evans was born in Viking, Alberta in 1946. As a youngster, the prairie landscape began to shape his awareness. In 1964 he enrolled in the Alberta College of Art (now the Alberta College of Art and Design) in Calgary, Alberta, graduating in 1968 with a major in pottery and ceramics.
In 1976 Dennis made a career decision to pursue a Bachelors degree in Fine Arts at the University of Calgary, and upon its completion, he went on to study for a Masters degree at the University of Houston, graduating in 1980.
Returning to Calgary in 1980, he became the production manager for a major pottery manufacturing company producing hand-crafted wares that were sold across Canada. In 1986 Dennis opened a production studio under the name, Nant Mill Pottery, in honour of his Welsh roots which produced a functional kitchen-ware line. While working as a production manager and in his own studio, he was contracted as a consultant which took him to Africa, twice. He also worked as a consultant on a First Nations economic development initiative which created gift ware items sold across Canada.
Business commitments in Calgary kept Dennis away from his own studio until January 2006 when he retired to Naramata, British Columbia. Two years before, he had built a small studio-workshop and with his wife, Patricia, they set about creating a garden setting to surround the studio which is built upon property that had been an old roadway, adjacent to their home.
No longer constrained by the conventions of the workplace, Dennis was able to return to his creative side. Challenged by his new environment, he has begun orienting himself to the new visual experience found in the Okanagan, and this is reflected in his landscape painting. He also launched his face studies series. Using colour to portray emotion, the faces of friends, neighbours and relatives are transformed into works of art. Limited edition pottery items are also being created. This time, shapes and forms are chosen by the artist to reflect his moods and his new found freedom to create, resulting in pieces with passion.
Dennis Evans 680 Robinson Avenue, PO Box 288, Naramata BC, V0H 1N0
250-496-5023,
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am an artist who takes inspiration from the environment. I work with acrylic on canvas to create paintings that are an interpretation of the landscape around me.
I paint to express my sense of place. My paintings are a result of walking in the landscape, creating compositions and quick studies, keeping only the elements I feel are needed to reveal the subtle heart of my surroundings.
On the surface, my images may not seem revolutionary or earth-shattering. The message is in the detail. My paintings are not monumental. They appear to be a humble snapshot of what might be called common, they are not. The art is in the subtle. There is something in the commonplace that needs to be voiced and preserved in as much as this is where the individual elements in the landscape are found, revealing our environment and understanding this is part of the preservation. I see value in what others may see as rubble landscape good only to be scoured off and made ready for something where the landscape is secondary or even less.
Professional History
1970 - 1976 Department Head, Arts and Crafts Program, Solicitor General, Drumheller, Alberta
1976 -1978 BFA Studies, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
1978 - 1980 MFA Studies, University of Houston, Houston, Texas
1980 - 1986 Production Manager, JBK Pottery, Calgary, Alberta
1986 - 1996 Owner, Nant Mill Pottery/ Art Studio and Consulting
1984 Consultant, Swaziland project for the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, UK
1985 Consultant, Tanzania for AJ Manji Company, Calgary, Alberta
1986 - 1994 Consultant, Siksika First Nation, Siksika, Alberta
1995 - 1997 Consultant, Redi Corporation, Medicine Hat, Alberta
1997 - 2002 Production Manager, Status Factory, Calgary, Alberta
2002 - 2006 Manager, Canadian Craft & Hobby Association
2006 - present Owner, Dennis Evans Art Studios, Naramata, B.C.
2007 - present Resource person, Naramata Centre, Naramata, B.C.
2011 - present Pottery Resource person, Shatford Centre, Penticton, BC
Exhibition Record
1966 Alberta Culture Travelling Exhibition
Group show, Sunrise Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1967 Group show, Gunthers Mobilia, Calgary, Alberta
1968 ACA Student Show, ACA Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
Group show, Allied Arts Centre, Calgary, Alberta
One man show, ACA Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1969 National Ceramics Exhibition, Toronto, Ontario
1972 Flare Square, Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, Calgary, Alberta
1976 Alberta Mud 76, Edmonton Public Library Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta
National Ceramics Exhibition, Glenbow Museum and Gallery, Calgary
Two person show, Gallery Three, Calgary, Alberta
1978 Alberta Mud 78, University of Calgary Art Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
BFA Graduating Show, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1980 MFA Graduating Show, one man exhibition, Houston, Texas
Group show, University of Houston, Houston, Texas
One man exhibition, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
New Works in Clay, one man exhibition, Galleria, Calgary, Alberta
One person show, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
Alberta Ceramic Showcase 80, Beaver House Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta
1981 Variations in Vessels, Alberta Potters= Association, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
University of Calgary Alumni Exhibition
1986 Two man exhibition, Galleria, Calgary, Alberta
1987 One man show, Artisan Studios, Calgary, Alberta
1990 Rocky Mountain Art Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1991 Group Show, ArtsNest, Calgary, Alberta
1994 Masks, The Croft, Calgary, Alberta
2011 Group Show, Living the Creative Life, Shatford Centre, Penticton, B.C.
Articles and Publications
1977 A Studio on the Twelfth Floor, CONTACT, Vol 23, March 1977, pp 12-13
Meroe- a talk by John Robertson, CONTACT, Vol 33, May 1977, p. 13
1980 Ceramic Form as an Expression, MFA Thesis, University of Houston,
1980 Fumed Surface Effects, Ceramics Monthly, December 1980
1984 Swaziland Pottery Adventure, CONTACT, Vol 56, January 1984, pp 17-18
1986 Alberta Clay Comes of Age, Studio Ceramics in Alberta III, 1964-1984, published by the Alberta Potters Association
1987 The Fiber Kilns of Dennis Evans, CONTACT, Issue 70, November 1987, p. 22
Public Service
1971 - 1972 Member, Drumheller Arts Advisory Committee, Drumheller, Alberta
1982 - 1984 Member, Advisory Committee, Alberta College of Art, Calgary, Alberta
1976 - 1978 Treasurer, Alberta Potters Association
1985 - 1987 President, Alberta Potters Association
Dennis Gordon Evans was born in Viking, Alberta in 1946. As a youngster, the prairie landscape began to shape his awareness. In 1964 he enrolled in the Alberta College of Art (now the Alberta College of Art and Design) in Calgary, Alberta, graduating in 1968 with a major in pottery and ceramics.
In 1976 Dennis made a career decision to pursue a Bachelors degree in Fine Arts at the University of Calgary, and upon its completion, he went on to study for a Masters degree at the University of Houston, graduating in 1980.
Returning to Calgary in 1980, he became the production manager for a major pottery manufacturing company producing hand-crafted wares that were sold across Canada. In 1986 Dennis opened a production studio under the name, Nant Mill Pottery, in honour of his Welsh roots which produced a functional kitchen-ware line. While working as a production manager and in his own studio, he was contracted as a consultant which took him to Africa, twice. He also worked as a consultant on a First Nations economic development initiative which created gift ware items sold across Canada.
Business commitments in Calgary kept Dennis away from his own studio until January 2006 when he retired to Naramata, British Columbia. Two years before, he had built a small studio-workshop and with his wife, Patricia, they set about creating a garden setting to surround the studio which is built upon property that had been an old roadway, adjacent to their home.
No longer constrained by the conventions of the workplace, Dennis was able to return to his creative side. Challenged by his new environment, he has begun orienting himself to the new visual experience found in the Okanagan, and this is reflected in his landscape painting. He also launched his face studies series. Using colour to portray emotion, the faces of friends, neighbours and relatives are transformed into works of art. Limited edition pottery items are also being created. This time, shapes and forms are chosen by the artist to reflect his moods and his new found freedom to create, resulting in pieces with passion.
Dennis Evans 680 Robinson Avenue, PO Box 288, Naramata BC, V0H 1N0
250-496-5023,
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am an artist who takes inspiration from the environment. I work with acrylic on canvas to create paintings that are an interpretation of the landscape around me.
I paint to express my sense of place. My paintings are a result of walking in the landscape, creating compositions and quick studies, keeping only the elements I feel are needed to reveal the subtle heart of my surroundings.
On the surface, my images may not seem revolutionary or earth-shattering. The message is in the detail. My paintings are not monumental. They appear to be a humble snapshot of what might be called common, they are not. The art is in the subtle. There is something in the commonplace that needs to be voiced and preserved in as much as this is where the individual elements in the landscape are found, revealing our environment and understanding this is part of the preservation. I see value in what others may see as rubble landscape good only to be scoured off and made ready for something where the landscape is secondary or even less.
Professional History
1970 - 1976 Department Head, Arts and Crafts Program, Solicitor General, Drumheller, Alberta
1976 -1978 BFA Studies, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
1978 - 1980 MFA Studies, University of Houston, Houston, Texas
1980 - 1986 Production Manager, JBK Pottery, Calgary, Alberta
1986 - 1996 Owner, Nant Mill Pottery/ Art Studio and Consulting
1984 Consultant, Swaziland project for the Commonwealth Secretariat, London, UK
1985 Consultant, Tanzania for AJ Manji Company, Calgary, Alberta
1986 - 1994 Consultant, Siksika First Nation, Siksika, Alberta
1995 - 1997 Consultant, Redi Corporation, Medicine Hat, Alberta
1997 - 2002 Production Manager, Status Factory, Calgary, Alberta
2002 - 2006 Manager, Canadian Craft & Hobby Association
2006 - present Owner, Dennis Evans Art Studios, Naramata, B.C.
2007 - present Resource person, Naramata Centre, Naramata, B.C.
2011 - present Pottery Resource person, Shatford Centre, Penticton, BC
Exhibition Record
1966 Alberta Culture Travelling Exhibition
Group show, Sunrise Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1967 Group show, Gunthers Mobilia, Calgary, Alberta
1968 ACA Student Show, ACA Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
Group show, Allied Arts Centre, Calgary, Alberta
One man show, ACA Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1969 National Ceramics Exhibition, Toronto, Ontario
1972 Flare Square, Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, Calgary, Alberta
1976 Alberta Mud 76, Edmonton Public Library Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta
National Ceramics Exhibition, Glenbow Museum and Gallery, Calgary
Two person show, Gallery Three, Calgary, Alberta
1978 Alberta Mud 78, University of Calgary Art Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
BFA Graduating Show, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1980 MFA Graduating Show, one man exhibition, Houston, Texas
Group show, University of Houston, Houston, Texas
One man exhibition, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
New Works in Clay, one man exhibition, Galleria, Calgary, Alberta
One person show, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
Alberta Ceramic Showcase 80, Beaver House Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta
1981 Variations in Vessels, Alberta Potters= Association, Muttart Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
University of Calgary Alumni Exhibition
1986 Two man exhibition, Galleria, Calgary, Alberta
1987 One man show, Artisan Studios, Calgary, Alberta
1990 Rocky Mountain Art Gallery, Calgary, Alberta
1991 Group Show, ArtsNest, Calgary, Alberta
1994 Masks, The Croft, Calgary, Alberta
2011 Group Show, Living the Creative Life, Shatford Centre, Penticton, B.C.
Articles and Publications
1977 A Studio on the Twelfth Floor, CONTACT, Vol 23, March 1977, pp 12-13
Meroe- a talk by John Robertson, CONTACT, Vol 33, May 1977, p. 13
1980 Ceramic Form as an Expression, MFA Thesis, University of Houston,
1980 Fumed Surface Effects, Ceramics Monthly, December 1980
1984 Swaziland Pottery Adventure, CONTACT, Vol 56, January 1984, pp 17-18
1986 Alberta Clay Comes of Age, Studio Ceramics in Alberta III, 1964-1984, published by the Alberta Potters Association
1987 The Fiber Kilns of Dennis Evans, CONTACT, Issue 70, November 1987, p. 22
Public Service
1971 - 1972 Member, Drumheller Arts Advisory Committee, Drumheller, Alberta
1982 - 1984 Member, Advisory Committee, Alberta College of Art, Calgary, Alberta
1976 - 1978 Treasurer, Alberta Potters Association
1985 - 1987 President, Alberta Potters Association
DENNIS EVANS ART STUDIOS
DENNIS EVANS ART STUDIOS
680 Robinson Avenue, Naramata, BC
250-496-5023
http://dpevans.shawwebspace.ca/
Drop in to my studio and enjoy the paintings and pottery created on-site. My inspiration is rooted in the Arts and Crafts Style promoting: strength in simplicity and an appreciation of the home's importance. Paintings, Pottery, Wall Tiles, Portraits.
Open mid-May through September long weekend: 10 am to 6 pm. October wine festival and by appointment
680 Robinson Avenue, Naramata, BC
250-496-5023
http://dpevans.shawwebspace.ca/
Drop in to my studio and enjoy the paintings and pottery created on-site. My inspiration is rooted in the Arts and Crafts Style promoting: strength in simplicity and an appreciation of the home's importance. Paintings, Pottery, Wall Tiles, Portraits.
Open mid-May through September long weekend: 10 am to 6 pm. October wine festival and by appointment