Calgary, Alberta, is a beautiful Canadian city—it’s a bustling art center fed by a vibrant community of artists, from historic visionaries to contemporary painters. Either through fine arts or professional residential painting services, Calgary continues to be a thriving hub of creative artistry and visual imagination.
Historical Foundations
The early 20th century was the foundation for Calgary’s artistic identity. Trailblazers such as Marion Nicoll, Calgary-born in 1909, were the core of Alberta’s abstract movement. Nicoll taught at the Ontario College of Art and the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art. Transitions from landscape to abstract and surrealist pieces made her a trailblazer. Interestingly, she was also the first woman instructor at the Provincial Institute in 1933 and joined the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 1977.
Another early artist, Janet Mitchell, appeared during the late 1940s. Her style transitioned from realistic landscape to fanciful, fantasy-based images involving mythological creatures in the form of animals. Based on Marc Chagall and Paul Klee, Mitchell was the first Western Canadian artist to appear on a Save the Children Fund Christmas card in 1965. She was also commissioned to create art work for Expo 67, further evidence of her increasing national stature.
Modern Voices in Calgary Art
Calgary’s modern art is characterized by its diversity and innovativeness. The artists pioneer new ground from what had come before, innovating traditional styles into new mediums and spheres.
British-Canadian Dulcie Foo Fat, who hails from Britain, creates large-scale representational paintings that reveal microscopic worlds such as tidal pools and forest floors. Her use of magical realism and abstract expressionism is used to highlight the balancing nature of the natural world.
Ron Moppett, whose abstract artwork is of Canadian and English descent, has also made valuable contributions to the public art works in Calgary. His 110-foot-long mosaic mural “THE SAME WAY BETTER/READER” at East Village is a strong indication of his dedication towards process-oriented, accessible work.
Arlene Stamp, initially a mathematician before she became a conceptual artist, applies mathematical series and non-representational equations to her painting and installation practice. Her analytical approach to working has been recognized across the country, most notably through induction into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 2007.
A new generation of painters in calgary artists is shaping the city’s artistic story through reflections on identity, culture, and lived experience. An example of one such artist is Marigold Santos, a Filipinx-Canadian multidisciplinary artist. Santos’s work encompasses painting and sculpture to print and tattooing. Santos’s artwork engages with Filipino mythology and Western popular culture to explore the complexities of immigration and what constitutes “home.”
The Local Painting Industry
Aside from the fine arts, there is also an active professional paint industry catering to household and commercial requirements.
Promo Painting & Decorating Ltd. began in 2005 and has painted over 980 homes in Calgary and had the privilege to serve upscale clients such as Fairmont Hotels. Their work pace and quality reputation is complemented by specialty finishes including Venetian Plaster and Metallic coatings.
The other highly rated companies include Mill Creek Painting, which boasts more than ten years of experience, and Neighbourhood Painting, a company that provides services from interior and exterior painting to fence and deck painting.
Whether on walls in the home or on canvas, Calgary painting is a mix of innovation and tradition. From early-day pioneers such as Marion Nicoll and Janet Mitchell to today’s artists such as Marigold Santos and Ron Moppett, Calgary is still a bastion of artistic prowess. Beyond house and business painters in the city professionally painting homes and businesses, Calgary’s painters continue to define Calgary’s visual culture and cultural identity.
