Robert Rutherford - "silkscreens"

Robert Rutherford was born and raised in Ontario. He studied with David Blackwood at Trinity College School, at the Banff School of Fine Arts, at L’Ecole des Beaux Arts d’Avignon, France, and at the Ontario College of Art. In the mid 1970’s, Robert moved to the Atlantic region where he continues to live and explore coves and ports. It is from these landscapes that Robert creates his art. He has developed his skill as a serigraph printmaker in unique ways. His manipulation of the up to thirty screens involved in each image, creates visual textures and shadings not usually found in serigraphs. Robert enjoys a playful nature and his works reflect that inquisitiveness. Movement plays an important role in many of his works; the path of a water current, the roll of a cloud or a Viking ship sailing through the sky. He says of his method, “Several times each year, I pack my thirty five year old classic motorcycle with camping gear and explore part of Atlantic Canada. When a good subject shows up, I find a quiet hill and draw for two or three hours. No photographs. The image is translated in the oldest, most direct language of symbols.” Robert challenges us to look around at the land and sea that is so familiar, and then helps us to realize it in a new way. Robert Rutherford’s paintings and prints have exhibited in solo and group exhibitions throughout Central and Eastern Canada. His work is found in collections such as; Nova Scotia Art Bank, Saint Mary’s University, Burnaby Art Gallery, Royal Military College, Imperial Oil Co., and Parks Canada.