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Paddling Through Art…
Exploring Canada's iconic watercraft through artworks that capture canoes, boats, docks and the quiet spirit of life in and on the water.
Walter J. Phillips RCA (1884-1963), Snake Island, Lake Winnipeg, 1931, ed. 40, wood engraving, 5.25 x 7.75 inches (13.5 x 19.5 cm), Description: MBL157, tenth print in Portfolio "Ten Woodcuts", signed l.l. (WJ Phillips), reproduced p.222 in Roger Boulet book The Tranquility and the Turbulence. Provenance: Calgary Collection, condition: excellent, archival framing with museum glass, $3900 Cdn.
Luke Anowtalik (E1-524) ᓗ ᐊᓇᐅᑕᓕ (1932-2006) Arviat/Eskimo Point ᐊᕐᕕᐊᑦ, Kayaker (#25.6.18), c.1980, carved antler, 3.25 x 3.25 x 15 inches (8.5 x 8.5 x 38 cm), provenance: Saskatchewan collection, $1700 Cdn.
Margaret Shelton CPE ASA (1915-84), Mt. Edith Cavell (75-P1), 1975, watercolour on paper, 13.5 x 18.5 inches (34 x 47 cm), framed, provenance: artist's estate, $2200 Cdn.
Ed Bamiling, Oblong Cup With Double Saucer (14.6), paperclay, stoneware, oxides, glazes, 3 x 14 x 5.5 inches (8 x 35 x 14 cm), $800 Cdn...doesn't this look like a canoe on rapids?
Colin Bell, Maligne Lake October, acrylic on panel, 18 x 24 inches (45.5 x 61 cm), framed, $1100 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, Cage Fish 195 Brooch, 2006, fusion welded stainless steel, electroformed copper, heavy 24k gold electroforming, carnelian, 4.25 x 1.5 x 1.25 inches (11 x 3.5 x 3 cm), $980 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, 'River Origin’ Brooch (Swoop Series), 1993, materials 18k gold laminate, sterling, 24k Bezels, Tear drop Green Tourmaline, Tear drop Garnet Oval Peridot, (13x5.5x2cm), $3000 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, Swoop Fish Brooch, 1992, copper, brass, 24k gold electroplating, 6.24 x 1.5 x .75 inches (16 x 4 x 2 cm), $940 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, Swoop Fish 2 Brooch, 1992, copper, brass, 24k gold electroplating, 5.5 x 1 3/8 x 3/8 inches (14.2 x 3.5 x 1 cm), $920 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, Wiggly Pin Series Brooch, late 80's-early 90's, 18k doublée, sterling silver, 3.25 x 1.5 x .5 inches (8.4 x 4 x 1.5 cm), $940 Cdn.
Charles Lewton-Brain RCA, “Sedna in the Foam” Brooch (Swoop Series), 1994, materials 18k gold laminate, sterling, 24k bezels, yellow oval tourmaline, pink oval tourmaline, (10.4x3.5x2 cm), $3100 Cdn.
Brandy Saturley, Vermilion Canoes, acrylic on canvas, 36x60x1.5 inches (91.5 x 152.5 x 4 cm)... In the land of Vermillion Lakes, with mount Rundle with it's distinctive slope outline in the distance. Two red canoes sit at sunset, the owners not to be seen. Perhaps an evening skinny dip or picnic. Filled with hues on sunset from red to orange and pink, a grassy fringe in the foreground frames the piece. Clouds like short brushstrokes sweep the sky... $7400 Cdn.
Brandy Saturley, Spirited Island, 2024, acrylic on canvas, 48x48 inches, 122x122cm),...There is a place in Jasper, Canada called Spirit Island where you may find a red canoe and an elusive moose or two. This painting is a vivid Canadian pop art rendering expressing the effervescent wilderness of the National Parks in Alberta, Canada.... $8000 Cdn.
Brandy Saturley, Minnewanka Muse, 2024, acrylic on canvas, 12x24 inches (30.5x61cm),...Lake Minnewanka or 'Water of the Spirits' (Nakoda) is a stunning glacial lake in Banff National Park. You can definitely feel the spirits when you are in this majestic location with bleach roots of expired trees on the shoreline. .. $1500 Cdn.
John Topelko (1925-2019), Camp Site, 1988, ed. 30, woodblock/paper, 10 x 14 inches, one remaining in the collection, framed, $595 Cdn (unframed $395 Cdn).
John Topelko (1925-2019), Portage, 1988, ed. 30, woodblock/paper, 14 3/4 x 10 3/4 inches, framed, $595 Cdn.
John Topelko (1925-2019), Ducks Fishing, 1988, ed. 31, woodblock/paper, 10x7.5 inches, framed, $595 Cdn.
Murray McDonnell, Edziza (#26.2), 2026, acrylic on canvas, 24 x 47.25 inches (61 x 120 cm), wrapped canvas, $3700 Cdn.
As Anne Ewen observes, "the canoe endures as one of our country's iconic cultural emblems while occupying a shifting but always unique place in our nation's identity" (Canoe, p. 9). Following the successful book signing for the newly published Canoe on October 31, we're pleased to announce that signed copies remain available at the gallery. We've also gathered works from our inventory that speak to canoes, boats, boat docks, boathouses, and subtle allusions to waterborne life. This selection brings together diverse voices—from WJ Phillips and Margaret Shelton to Luke Anowtalik, Ed Bamiling, Charles Lewton-Brain, John Topelko, Brandy Saturday, and Colin Bell—each capturing the enduring relationship between people and water. And as Murray McDonnell reminds us, many of his paintings are views rendered directly from a canoe, grounding the viewer in that singular perspective of calm movement across still water. We invite you to discover how these artists translate the rhythm of paddles, the geometry of docks, and the quiet anticipation of departure into lasting imagery.