Learn about the life and work of a beloved Canmore artist, Michael Vincent. Michael’s life as a freelance artist started to really flourish in the early 1980s shortly after he and his wife, Judy, married in Canmore. Initially, he involved himself in very detailed, realistic pen ink drawings of the wood framed miner’s houses that fascinated him and delved into the realm of experimental printmaking using wood, linoleum, card and glass. By the late 1980s, he moved to painting the mountain vistas and seascapes of his original home with acrylics. He had many joint and one-man exhibitions in England, Bahamas and Canada.
Join art curator and historian Mary-Beth Laviolette in this online presentation with Judy Vincent, wife of the late Michael Vincent, showcasing a selection of his works.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Born in England, Michael began to pursue his passionof being an artist after high school. He attended Bournemouth and Poole College of Art from 1961- 65 gaining the National Diploma of Design (N.D.D.) He became an art teacher first at a secondary school in Southampton from 1966-72 and later a graphics teacher at Queens College in Nassau from1972 to 1975. He also taught an adult pottery class in the Bahamas where he met Judy Atkinson. Later at a dance they were both smitten. Michael immigrated to Canada in 1976 and married Judy in Canmore, her hometown. Their children, Michael-John and Morgan completed their lives, arriving in the early 80’s. Judy continued teaching and Michael looked after their children and continued with his artwork at home.
This is when his life as a freelance artist really started to flourish. Initially, he involved himself in very detailed, realistic pen ink drawings of the wood framed miner’s houses that fascinated him. He was commissioned by many people to draw their houses, portraits, old barns, wildlife and logos. He delved into the realm of experimental printmaking using wood, linoleum, card and glass. By the late 1980’s, he moved to painting the mountain vistas and seascapes of his original home with acrylics. He had many joint and one-man exhibitions in England, Bahamas and Canada and his artwork is hanging in many places around the world. In 2006, Michael was a nominee for the Mayor’s Award for Artistic Achievement. To quote the nominators, “Michael’s images are immediately powerful and evoke a curiosity about our past, our heritage and significantly, provide wonderful insight to our current community as it strives to create a future Canmore while remaining mindful of its past.”
Mary-Beth Laviolette, Associate Curator of Art
ABOUT THE PRESENTER
Mary-Beth Laviolette, is an avid hiker and independent art writer and curator based in Canmore, Alberta, who specializes in Albertan and Western Canadian art. She is the author of A Delicate Art: Artists, Wildflowers and Native Plants of the West and An Alberta Art Chronicle: Adventures in Recent & Contemporary Art, 1970–2000, and co-author of Alberta Art & Artists: A Survey. Recent exhibitions she has curated include Reckonings: Michael Cameron & Karen Maiolo (Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff); Pulse: Alberta Society of Artists at 80 Years (Triangle Gallery of Visual Arts, Calgary) and Alberta Mistresses of the Modern: 1935 to 1975 (Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton). Mary-Beth is also a public speaker and enjoys engaging with the public about art whenever and wherever possible. Mary-Beth serves as the Canmore Museum’s Associate Curator of Art.