Jean Sheppard Biography

Banff National Park Gallery of Fine Art and Photography


		Jean Sheppard Biography
		Jean Sheppard’s attention to place is apparent in her work, from the subtle shifts in light and color at certain times of the day to the depiction of quiet, contemplative places. Her works will place you in the moment and mood of well-loved trails and/or sweeping vistas. The artist states that pastel, with its intense, vibrant pigments, is the perfect medium to communicate her message of attachment and concern for our land and its beauty. She indicates that her purpose is not to “replicate the scene… but to capture a feeling or a mood for a place”. “It is usually colour that first draws me to a particular scene. In the spring there is a short period of time when the fields, trees, and new growth glow with a green that seems almost unreal, unnatural. This intense color quickly softens and over the summer a gentler palette appears, and then explodes with the intense golden yellows, oranges and reds of the fall foliage. Time and time again I have been drawn to these fall scenes.” The artist’s home is a short drive from high mountains in one direction and prairie vistas in the other. She paints it all, although she reveals she is particularly fond of the rolling, curvaceous, sculpted foothills. For her, it is an added bonus when the local ranchers have outlined the shape of the land with their swaths of hay and the harvest of crops. The gallery will also feature monotypes and linoblock prints by the artist. According to Jean, “the land has been a powerful force on Canadians and has affected our lives, our communities and our history. It produces an emotional response in many. These paintings are my response to the incredibly beautiful landscape that surrounds me”. Jean Sheppard has background in biology (B.Sc. in Biology, Carleton University (1963); M.Sc. in Biology, University of Saskatchewan (1968), where she worked for five years). In 1977 she and her family moved to the foothills near Pincher Creek. Jean set up a studio beside their home and worked as a professional potter. It was here that she began painting with soft pastels and then in 1998, upon retiring from making pottery, concentrated on that medium as well as printmaking. Jean Sheppard and her husband Dave are known advocates for the environment.
		Curriculum Vitae Education 1963 - B.Sc.(Hons. Biology) Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario 1968 - M.Sc.(Biology) University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan 1971 - various non-degree, non-diploma courses in pottery, University of Regina 1972 - glaze chemistry, Vancouver College of Art 1973 –1998 - professional potter 1994 – present - pastel artist 2001 – Landscape Painting – David More, Red Deer College 2002 – Introduction to Monotypes –Susan Woolgar, Red Deer College 2003 – Advanced Monotypes – Susan Woolgar, Red Deer College Solo Exhibitions June 2010 - "Prairies to Peaks" Willock & Sax Gallery, Banff, Alberta June 2006 – “Consider the Lilies….” Willock & Sax Gallery, Waterton Park, AB March/April 2004 – “Pressing Matters – Exploring the Monotype” Allied Arts Council, Lebel Mansion Gallery, Pincher Creek, AB July/August/September 2003 – “A Closer Look at Iris”, Bowman Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB October 2002 – “Peaks and Valleys – Landscapes of Waterton Park”, Willock and Sax Gallery July 2001 – “A Closer Look at Iris”, Willock & Sax Gallery October 1999 - "West of the 5th", Allied Arts Council, Lebel Mansion Gallery August 1997 - Waterton Natural History Association, Heritage Centre, Waterton Park, AB July 1996 - Waterton Natural History Association July 1995 - Waterton Natural History Association October 1994 - "Flora and Other Friends", Allied Arts Council, Pincher Creek, AB July 1994 - Waterton Natural History Association Group Exhibitions July-September 2008 – “It’s Not What but How” – Crowsnest Pass Allied Arts Association Art Gallery, Frank, Alberta July-September 2005 - “Textures on the Land” – Crowsnest Pass Allied Arts Association July 2004 – “Wonder of Water” – Jean Sheppard, Linda Anderson Stewart and Jim Stokes, Willock and Sax Gallery, Waterton Park, AB August 1998 - July 2001 - "Prairie Grass to Mountain Pass" Muttart Travelling Exhibition Program, Alberta Foundation of the Arts September 1997 - "Pincher in the Pass", Crowsnest Pass Allied Arts September, October 1996 -" Sunflowers"- Allied Arts Council, Pincher Creek, AB August 1996 - Oppertshauser Gallery, Stony Plain, AB January, February 1994 - "Flowers and Trees", Bowman Art Gallery, Lethbridge, AB Gallery Representation: Willock & Sax Ltd. Gallery (since 1999) My work is in private collections across Canada, the United States, Europe, Japan, Australia, and South Africa Other December 2002 – elected to Pastel Society of Canada November 2001 – “From the Mountains to the Prairies – Two Artists Who Love the Landscape” by Jill Barber. Rockies magazine, Fall 2001/Winter2002, pages 8-9 January 1995 - "Above Mill Creek" accepted for FEESA (Friends of Environmental Education Society of Alberta) Alberta Species and Places Calendar, 1996, September Volunteer art related work 1988-1997, 1999 to 2002, director on the board of the Allied Arts Council of Pincher Creek, 1990-1992, president Teaching March 2002 – An Introduction to Using Soft Pastels, Allied Arts Council of Pincher Creek October 2000 – Introduction to Lino Block Printing, Allied Arts Council of Pincher Creek February 1998 - Introduction to Lino Block Printing, Allied Arts Council of Pincher Creek