Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 12

Arthur McKay
'Abstract', Canadian Modernist, Regina Five, Post Painterly Abstraction, NYMOMA

Circa 1975

About the Item

Signed lower left, 'A. McKay' for Arthur "Art" Fortescue McKay (Canadian, 1926-2000) and painted circa 1975. An important Canadian painter, draftsman, printmaker and an influential educator, Arthur McKay was born in Saskatchewan and first studied at the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art, Calgary, Alberta, most notably under Jock Macdonald (1946-1948). He subsequently studied in Paris at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière (1949–1950) before attending classes at Columbia University and the Barnes Foundation (both between 1956 and 1957). McKee worked most of his life in Regina, Saskatchewan (1950–1994) and first gained national recognition exhibiting as a member of The Regina Five (circa 1959 – 1966), an experimental group whose work is considered a milestone in the development of Canadian Abstraction. McKay exhibited widely and with success including at New York's Museum of Modern Art, the National Gallery of Canada, where he also participated in the Canadian Biennials (1957, 1959, 1961, 1963, 1965), and with Clement Greenberg’s landmark touring exhibition "Post Painterly Abstraction". He also exhibited in the Canadian Government Pavilion at Expo 67, Montreal, with the Ontario Society of Artists (1959), the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (1961, 1962, 1963, 1968), the Albright–Knox Art Gallery (1962), the Vancouver Art Gallery (1964); the MacKenzie Art Gallery, and the Moose Jaw Art Museum (1975), among others. After serving in the Canadian Army (1943–1945), He continued his studies at the Emma Lake Artists' Workshop in Saskatchewan, taking classes under Jack Shadbolt, Joe Plaskett, Will Barnet, Barnet Newman, Herman Cherry, Clement Greenberg, Kenneth Noland, Jules Olitski, Donald Judd, Anthony Caro, John Ferran, Frank Stella, and Lawrence Alloway (1955–1965). In 1950, McKay began teaching as a part-time instructor at the School of Art of Regina College. He became as associate professor in 1963 and was Director from 1964–1967. He took leave to work as Professor of Art at the Nova Scotia College of Art, Halifax for one year (1967–1968) and returned to the University of Regina where he was Artist-in-Residence (1978) and associate professor until 1987. Claude Breeze and Brian Fisher were two of his most famous students. Arthur McKay's work is held in numerous permanent collections including the Art Gallery of Alberta (Edmonton), Art Gallery of Hamilton (Ontario), Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (Halifax), Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto), Art Gallery of Windsor (Ontario), Glenbow Museum (Calgary, Alberta), Justina M. Barnicke Gallery – Hart House Collection (University of Toronto, Ontario), MacKenzie Art Gallery (Regina, Saskatchewan), Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art (Quebec), Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (Quebec), Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery (Saskatchewan), Museum London (Ontario), Ottawa Art Gallery (Ontario), University of Lethbridge Art Gallery, Vancouver Art Gallery, Winnipeg Art Gallery and the National Gallery of Canada. Among McKay’s honors and awards are a Canada Foundation grant (1956), a Humanities Research Council grant (1957) and three Canada Council grants (1963, 1967 and 1968). Bibliography: A Companion to American Art (2015), edited by John Davis, Jennifer A. Greenhill, Jason D. La Fountain; John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, N.J. A Concise History of Canadian Painting, 3rd edition (2012), by Dennis Reid; Oxford University Press, Toronto The Last Art College: Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, 1968 – 1978 (2012), by Garry Neill Kennedy; MIT Press, Cambridge The Visual Arts in Canada: The Twentieth Century (2010), by Brian Foss, Anne Whitelaw and Sandra Paikowsky (see askART Publications) Abstract Painting in Canada (2008), by Roald Nasgaard (see askART Publications) Canadian Paintings, Prints and Drawings (2007), by Anne Newlands (see askART Publications) As One Who Serves: The Making of the University of Regina (2006), by James M. Pitsula; McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal The Sixties in Canada (2005), by Denise Leclerc and Pierre Dessureault; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa The Shape of Colour: Excursions in Colour Field Art, 1950 – 2005 (2005), edited by David Moos; Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan (2005), by Canadian Plains Research Center; published by the Canadian Plains Research Center, University of Regina, Regina A History of Art in Alberta, 1905 – 1970 (2005), by Nancy Townshend; Bayeux Arts, Inc., Calgary Biographical Index of Artists in Canada (2003), by Evelyn de Rostaing McMann (see askART Publications) Canadian Art: From its Beginnings to 2000 (2002), by Anne Newlands (see askART Publications) Sights of Resistance: Approaches to Canadian Visual Culture (2001), by Robert James Belton; University of Calgary Press The Collector's Dictionary of Canadian Artists at Auction (2001), by Anthony R. Westbridge and Diana L. Bodnar (see askART Publications) Canadian Art in the Twentieth Century (1999), by Joan Murray; Dundurn Press, Toronto Home Base: Notes to an Installation (1998), by Andrew Hunter; Kamloops Art Gallery, Kamloops, B.C. Contemporary Canadian Artists (1997), edited by Roger Matuz; Gale Canada, Scarborough, Ontario A to Z of Canadian Art: artists & art terms (1997), by Blake McKendry (see askART Publications) Arthur F. McKay: A Critical Retrospective (1997), by David Howard, Timothy Long and Alex Kelly; MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina The Dictionary of Art (1996), edited by Jane Turner (see askART Publications) The Collected Essays and Criticism: Modernism with a Vengeance, 1957 – 1969 (1995), by Clement Greenberg (see askART Publications) Achieving the Modern: Canadian Abstract Painting and Design in the 1950s (1993), by Robert McKaskell, et al; Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg The Crisis of Abstraction in Canada: The 1950s (1992), by Denise Leclerc and Marion H. Barclay; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa Art and Architecture in Canada (1991), by Loren R. Lerner and Mary F. Williamson (see askART Publications) The Canadian Encyclopedia Second Edition (1988), edited by James H. Marsh; Hurtig Publishers Ltd., Edmonton, Alberta Montreal Museum of Fine Arts: Spring Exhibitions 1880 – 1970 (1988), by Evelyn de R. McMann (see askART Publications) Documents in Canadian Art (1987), edited by Douglas Fetherling; Broadview Press Ltd., Peterborough Founders of the Alberta College of Art (1986), by Valerie Greenfield; Alberta College of Art Gallery, Calgary (1984), by Michael Parke-Taylor and Norman Zepp; Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Visions – Contemporary Art in Canada (1983), edited by Robert Bringhurst, et al. (see askART Publications) Contemporary Canadian Art (1983), by David Burnett and Marilyn Schiff (see askART Publications) Who's Who in American Art 15th Edition (1982), by Jaques Cattell Press (see askART Publications) Watercolour Painting in Saskatchewan, 1905 – 1980 (1981), by Robert Christie; Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon The University of Saskatchewan Permanent Art Collection, 1980 (1980), by Lynne S. Bell and Isobel Findlay (see askART Publications) The University of Guelph Art Collection: A Catalogue of Paintings, Drawings, Prints and Sculpture (1980), by Judith M. Nasby; University of Guelph, Ontario Regina 25 Years, 1953 to 1978: An Exhibition in Honour of Regina's 75th Anniversary (1978), by Arthur McKay and Nancy E. Dillow; Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Modern Painting in Canada: Major Movements in Twentieth Century Canadian Art (1978), by Terry Fenton and Karen Wilkin (see askART Publications) Firestone Art Collection (1978), by John Evans; McGraw-Hill Ryerson, New York Norman Mackenzie: Building a Collection (1978), by Carol A. Phillips; Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Painting in Canada: a history (1977), by J. Russell Harper; University of Toronto Press The Shell Canada Collection: A Selection of Canadian Art Assembled by the Employees of Shell Canada Ltd. (1977), by Basil Shammas; published by Shell Canada Ltd, Calgary A Dictionary of Canadian Artists: Volume 4, Little – Myles (1974), by Colin S. MacDonald; Canadian Paperbacks Publishing Limited, Ottawa, Ontario The History of Painting in Canada – Toward a Peoples' Art (1974), by Barry Lord (see askART Publications) Mystic Circle (1973), by Lobsang Phuntshok Lhalungpa and George Woodcock (see askART Publications) Emma Lake Workshops, 1955 – 1973 (1973), by Nancy E. Dillow; Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Creative Canada: A Biographical Dictionary of Twentieth Century Creative and Performing Arts” (1972), by Helen M. Rodney; University of Toronto Press Four Decades: The Canadian Group of Painters and their contemporaries – 1930 - 1970 (1972), by Paul Duval; Clarke, Irwin & Company Ltd., Toronto Saskatchewan: Art and Artists (1971), by Nancy E. Dillow, Terry Fenton and Wayne Morgan; Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Canadian Art Today (1970), by William Townsend (see askART Publications) Art Gallery of Ontario – The Canadian Collection (1970), by Helen Pepall Bradfield (see askART Publications) A.F. McKay: Paintings and Drawings, 1959 – 1967 (1968), by Terry Fenton; Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Painting in Canada (1967), by Barry Lord; Canadian Government Pavilion, Expo 67, Montreal Three Hundred Years of Canadian Art (1967), by R.H. Hubbard and J.R. Ostiguy (see askART Publications) Statements: 18 Canadian Artists (1967), by Norman Mackenzie Art Gallery; Mackenzie Art Gallery, Regina Sixth Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Painting – 1965 (1965), by William Townsend; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa Post Painterly Abstraction (1964), by Clement Greenberg; published by Los Angeles County Museum of Art Contemporary Art Council Five Painters from Regina (1961), by Ronald L Bloore and Richard B.Simmins; Queen's Printer, Ottawa Second Biennial of Canadian Art, 1957 (1957), by Donald W Buchanan; National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa Canadian Heritage Information Network* Saskatchewan Network for Art Collecting
  • Creator:
    Arthur McKay (1926 - 2000, Canadian)
  • Creation Year:
    Circa 1975
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 18 in (45.72 cm)Width: 22.5 in (57.15 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
    minor losses, craquelure, minor restoration; unframed; shows well.
  • Gallery Location:
    Santa Cruz, CA
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU34412251562

More From This Seller

View All
'Pointillist Abstract', Paris, Étretat, New York, Whitney Museum, MoMA, PAFA
By Manfred Schwartz
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Estate stamp, verso, for Manfred Schwartz (American, 1909-1970) and painted circa 1960. Paper dimensions: 15 x 19.75 inches. Born in Lodz, Poland, Manfred Schwartz immigrated to Am...
Category

1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Gouache, Pen

'Abstract', Marin, Watercolor Artists of San Francisco, De Young Museum
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower right, 'A. Cunningham' for Alfred A Cunningham (American, 20th century) and painted circa 1965. Alfred Cunningham was active in Northern California from the 1950's thro...
Category

1960s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Gouache

'Rainbow Abstract', San Francisco Bay Area, Abstract Expressionist Watercolor
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower left, 'Hourian Hamid' (Iranian-American, 20th century) and dated 1985. A large, flowing abstract by the brother of the artist, Mohammed Hourian.
Category

1980s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor

'Oberon, Series 1', Instituto Allende, Carmel Art Association, NAWA, La Jolla
By Barbara Johnson
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower right, 'Barbara Johnson' (American, 1927-2021) and titled, lower left, 'Oberon Series 1'. Exhibited: Carmel Art Association, circa 1995 (accompanied by original label) ...
Category

1980s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Gold Leaf

'Dynamic Abstract', California San Francisco Bay Area Modernism, Thiebaud
By Robert George Gilberg
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
A substantial, mid-century watercolor abstract comprising interrelated geometric and biomorphic elements in a palette of primary and secondary colors. Signed upper left, 'Gilberg' ...
Category

1940s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor, Gouache, Pen

Winter Coming
Located in Santa Cruz, CA
Signed lower left, 'Donna Dearden'; additionally signed on old backing, titled, 'Winter Coming' and painted circa 1975. A semi-abstracted study of abscised leaves against a variegat...
Category

1970s Abstract Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Watercolor, Gouache

Winter Coming
$431 Sale Price
25% Off

You May Also Like

Abstract Portrait of a Woman in Gouache on Paper
Located in Soquel, CA
Abstract Portrait of a Woman in Gouache on Paper A vibrant abstract portrait of a woman with raven black hair accented in bold red and yellow, by California-based artist, Ricardo de Silva (American...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings a...

Materials

Gouache, Paper

Lightbulb Moment Abstract - "Bright Idea"
Located in Soquel, CA
Lightbulb Moment Abstract - "Bright Idea" A vibrant abstract painting of a lightbulb in reds accented in yellow and white chalk, by California-based artist, Ricardo de Silva...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings a...

Materials

Paper, Charcoal, Watercolor, Gouache

Argentinian Tango, Mixed Media Abstract Expressionist
Located in Soquel, CA
Argentinian Tango, Mixed Media Abstract Expressionist An abstract portrait in cool pastels accented in vibrant yellow and pink and lined in ink, by California-based artist, Ricardo de Silva (American). Paper size: 17.75"H x 12"W From a collection of Ricardo de Silva's work and memorabilia. DeSilva was born in Brazil and grew up in Los Angeles. He was a gallery owner, first in Santa Barbara in the 1960's and 70's, then in San Jose in the 1980's. He was dedicated to promoting the work of talented upcoming artists, including Kogyo and Hasui Kiyochika, Robert Frame, Jim Stuckenberg, Alice Robertson Carr, Deborah Eve Alastra...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings a...

Materials

Ink, Watercolor, Paper, Gouache

Ellen Hackl Fagan, Doremi_Musicians-J, 2012, Ink, Gouache, Rag Paper
By Ellen Hackl Fagan
Located in Darien, CT
ColorSoundGrammar Ellen Hackl Fagan There is a long history of sound/color synaesthesia work, from Isaac Newton’s color organ to Alexander Scriabin’s “Prometheus,” but not much ...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings a...

Materials

Ink, Gouache, Rag Paper

Balancing act 2 (Abstract Painting)
By Tracey Adams
Located in London, GB
Balancing act 2 (Abstract Painting) Gouache, graphite and ink on Rives paper. Unframed. Balancing Act 2 is part of a series of works on paper started in 2016. They are created in the evenings and aptly named after busy days of teaching and other responsibilities. The artist establishes parameters involving the use of a particular palette, certain mark-making gestures and amount of time spent on each drawing. This work incorporates graphite, ink, and gouache, and is a combination of intuition-based and planned execution. Tracey Adams is an American abstract painter and printmaker. Her artworks reflect a strong interest in musical patterns, rhythms, lyrical compositional elements and what she calls a sense of performance. She lives and works in Carmel, California. Work by Adams is part of the permanent collections of several museums, including the Bakersfield Art Museum, the Monterey Museum of Art, the Fresno Art Museum, the Tucson Art...
Category

2010s Abstract Expressionist Abstract Paintings

Materials

Paper, Ink, Gouache, Graphite

Bold Graphic Abstract Expressionist Mixed Media Painting Richard Snyder NYC Art
Located in Surfside, FL
Richard Snyder (American, born 1951) Untitled Mixed media painting including charcoal and watercolor Hand signed to lower right Dimensions: 30.0" W x 22.5" H x 0.1" D Richard Snyder is particularly known for his large-scale abstract expressionist paintings exhibiting vibrant colors, often applied in an irregular manner with large gestural brushstrokes. He also was an accomplished sculptor and was amongst the downtown New York art-furniture scene spawned in the 1980s by the Soho gallery ‘Art et Industrie’ founded by Rick Kaufmann. Downtown New York, circa 1977-1980 was a hothouse of creative impulses that flew in the face of restrictions and ran headlong toward riotous expression. Punk, hip-hop, graffiti or neo-expressionism, Kaufmann looked around for new talent that could create a new kind of art furniture. He felt the design of the day was so standardised, and he wanted to give voice to young artists and bring new ideas to market. After receiving a BFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Snyder made his career in the fields of art and design, practicing sculpture, painting, furniture design and fabrication, interior design, cabinetmaking, construction and industrial design. Along with extensive experience in a wide variety of materials and processes, Snyder also possesses a wide range of visual and experiential vocabulary acquired in his many travels through the Americas, Africa, the Middle East and Central and Southeast Asia. Snyder considers his objects to be not just about form, function, color, material and process, but rather to be fantasies with spirit, magic and story. During his seventeen years with the Art et Industrie gallery, Snyder participated in five solo shows and more than twenty group shows, which established him as a major player in the American Art Furniture movement. His pieces have appeared in numerous publications and media around the world; and they are included in numerous private collections worldwide as well as in the permanent collection of The Art Institute of Chicago. Snyder guest-lectures at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, the New School in New York, and SUNY Purchase. He was included in the seminal Magen H Gallery retrospective of Art et Industrie—a New York Movement. Art et Industrie was the first to exhibit Studio Alchemia, Shiro Takahama, and Ron Arad. The retrospective included artists such as Forrest Myers, Terence Main...
Category

20th Century Abstract Expressionist Abstract Drawings and Watercolors

Materials

Paper, Charcoal, Watercolor, Gouache

Recently Viewed

View All