Dear Alan

By Alberta Foundation for the Arts

Alberta Foundation for the Arts

A checkered
snake, skin of diamonds black and red, slithers across
the foreground of an ambiguous
Wild West mise-en-scène in an untitled,
undated drawing
by little-known artist Alan.

Untitled by AlanAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Small unidentifiable spheres dot the ground at almost regular intervals, and various tropical birds hold court in the sky, while an elderly cowboy extends his lasso, which like the snake, is curiously straight, in the direction of three surprised looking cattle. The horizon is obscured by undulating hills, and a strange melange of deciduous trees and cacti—both in morphing shades of green, from neon to forest—push through the arid ground throughout the composition. A surreal tour de force, and indeed, a conceptually compelling meditation upon the strangeness of landscape, Alan’s drawing serves as the launching point of Dear Alan; it speaks to a persistent interest in issues pertaining to landscape, methodologies of collecting, and mythologies of Alberta, writ large.

Great Bear Lake by A.Y. JacksonAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Dear Alan brings together a dizzying number of landscapes from the AFA permanent collection, displayed in a digital gallery, salon style.

And On This Farm (1988) by Janet MitchellAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Rather than present works within a cohesive curatorial theme, based on typical modes of exhibition-making that rely on continuities such as concept, form, or historical period, this exhibition seeks instead to show varied, and at times disparate, artistic approaches to landscape representation, across time and medium

Windbreak (1982) by Alexandra HaesekerAlberta Foundation for the Arts

—a curatorial methodology that speaks to an impulse to approach art through a productive un-knowing—a state of wonder—that eschews the reliance upon expertise in a given area of research.

I'm Hiding (1980) by Rita McKeoughAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Like the permanent collection itself, which in all institutions shifts and morphs with changing leadership, access to funds, and artistic vision...

Eskimo Scene (1950) by KablonaAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Dear Alan chronicles the ebbs and flows of the AFA’s ever-changing collecting ethos and the evolving artistic and political sensibilities in Alberta more broadly.

Sidewalk (1979) by Robert BurcherAlberta Foundation for the Arts

The exhibition includes: out of focus lawns bisected by boring sidewalk slabs;

Early Snow (1990) by Anne PatrickAlberta Foundation for the Arts

an Alberta highway as a crystal blue river;

Rosedeer Hotel/Wayne, Alberta (1973) by Wally HounAlberta Foundation for the Arts

ghost towns and haunted hotels tucked into rocky coulees;

Red And Blue Landscape by Kay AnglissAlberta Foundation for the Arts

the sun, 25 million years from now, as a red Supergiant;

Earth Blanket (1973) by Gisela FelsbergAlberta Foundation for the Arts

mountains that dance;

Flatlands (1973) by Illingworth KerrAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a farmer’s field as homemade quilt;

Twin Poplar (1993) by Peter Von TiesenhausenAlberta Foundation for the Arts

two trees, twins, upon which a brother, now gone, carved his initials;

Treeline (2006) by Bryce MeyerAlberta Foundation for the Arts

the unremarkable light on a rare overcast day;

The Water And The Wall by Velma FosterAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a pink river;

rock paper river (2005) by Faye HeavyShieldAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a river made of boats made of the river;

Red Capsules by Bruce BentzAlberta Foundation for the Arts

hot dogs—or are they pill capsules?—in snow;

Canada Classic: Country Beak (1985) by Robert SinclairAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a sky of fire, maybe the red Supergiant, again;

Karlukwees, B.C. by Walter PhillipsAlberta Foundation for the Arts

the way sunlight still pushes through a snowy sky;

Dusk by Barbara Rose HicklinAlberta Foundation for the Arts

can you see the outlines of mountains at night?;

Oil Fields #22 Cold Lake Production Project (2002) by Edward BurtynskyAlberta Foundation for the Arts

pipelines can look beautiful even if their existence is violent;

The Whisper Of Autumn (1977) by Primrose DiakowAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a purple river;

Clouded Shrouded Mountains (1984) by Esther HowAlberta Foundation for the Arts

the tips of mountains poking through low clouds, unseeable from most vantage points;

Sunset Beginnings (1985) by Joane Cardinal-SchubertAlberta Foundation for the Arts

the sunset as an amoeba;

Cowboy Tourist At Lake Minnewanka (1985) by Douglas CurranAlberta Foundation for the Arts

that cowboy by the lake;

Away With His Dogs (1992) by Jim LoganAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a snoozing or playing pup;

The Book Of Flatland Dharma, The Structures: Towards Old Beginnings (1978) by Arthur NishimuraAlberta Foundation for the Arts

a place where water flows two ways;

St. Mary's Romanian Orthodox Church At Boian (1989) by Doris ZahariuchukAlberta Foundation for the Arts

another horse;

Just Before The Storm (1990) by Sylvain VoyerAlberta Foundation for the Arts

quiet; the way the land cried when we broke her;

Fall, Assinibone River by Walter PhillipsAlberta Foundation for the Arts

and to listen to her when she tells us where to find water.

Postcard From A Pink Trailer (1972) by Harry SavageAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Dear Alan, thank you for reminding us, that all around, there is wonder in this place.

Untitled by Roland GissingAlberta Foundation for the Arts

Credits: Story

Dear Alan
Curated by Natasha Chaykowski and Yasmin Nurming-Por
2017 Emerging Curator Fellows

This exhibition represents 32 artworks by 31 Alberta artists:

Alan*
Kay Angliss
Bruce Bentz
Robert Burcher
Edward Burtynsky
Joane Cardinal-Schubert
Douglas Curran
Primrose Diakow
Gisela Felsberg
Velma Foster
Roland Gissing
Alexandra Haeseker
Faye HeavyShield
Barbara Rose Hicklin
Wally Houn
Esther How
A.Y. Jackson
Kablona
Illingworth Kerr
Jim Logan
Rita McKeough
Bryce Meyer
Janet Mitchell
Arthur Nishimura
Anne Patrick
Walter Phillips
Harry Savage
Robert Sinclair
Peter von Tiesenhausen
Sylvain Voyer
Doris Zahariuchuk

*Unknown artist

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
Explore more
Related theme
What is Contemporary Art?
Challenging the notion of art itself – explore the art of our recent past, present and future
View theme
Google apps