Canadian Folk Art

Immerse yourself in more than 425 previously unpublished colour photographs of Canada's disappearing traditional folk art. The authors' discovery of distinctive objects from across Canada inspired them to re-classify folk art, and to analyze and interpret their examples in 17 thematic chapters. The "aesthetic of the everyday" of Canada's material heritage is presented through paintings and carvings, quilts and rugs, tables and trade signs-just to mention a few. These traditional art forms of diverse community groups express a decorative cultural identity, documented through the unique lens of photographer James A. Chambers. Historians, curators, collectors, designers, and dealers, as well as anyone who appreciates material culture, will want to have this collection in their libraries.

There may be many folk artists in Canada, but there is only one integrated folk art scene: the one in Nova Scotia. Classic folk art is the work of artists who did not think of themselves as artists, who made art that they never considered to be art at all. There were no festivals, no galleries, and no touring exhibitions when they started--just a sign by the side of the road, a painted house, or colourful sculptures in the yard to attract the attention of passers-by. Today in Nova Scotia, contemporary folk art has become a distinct style, one which stresses individual creativity over collective utility. The maker, and their stories, is central to the appeal. Written by former Art Gallery of Nova Scotia curator Ray Cronin, Nova Scotia Folk Art features profiles of fifty artists--some obscure and some well known--from the first, second, and third waves of folk art. The list includes Barry Colpitts, Laura Kenney, Ralph Boutilier, Craig Naugler, Joseph Norris, and Maud Lewis. With more than 150 colour images, this illustrated guide explores the exhibitions, collections, and festivals that allowed a group of Nova Scotia artists to move their creations from the roadside to the museum, and in so doing to create its own genre: Nova Scotia Folk Art.

By its very nature, folk art is hilarious, cranky, homely, beautiful or just plain charming, and appeals to almost everyone. Over the years, folk artists across Canada have produced an inventive and eclectic array of objects to decorate their homes, yards and gardens, creating their own personal Edens. This delightful book displays the wide range of folk art that decorates yards across the nation: whirligigs of loggers sawing, sea gulls flying, anglers casting, planes flying; weather vanes of improbable roosters and elegant horses and even surprised beavers; bird houses of fantastical and flamboyant architecture; lawn ornaments and yard sculptures of whimsical ducks, frogs, fish and other creatures; as well as original interpretations of family groupings, mythic figures and national icons such as Mounties. The accompanying text by Phil Tilney explores the history of folk art and its various forms, the story of the development of Canadian yard art and the place of gardens as a re-creation of Eden in classical, medieval and renaissance times in Europe as well as in Asia and Canada.