Iain Baxter&
Born in Middleborough, UK as Iain Baxter, Iain Baxter& legally changed his surname in 2005 to reflect a self-professed fascination with the ampersand as a foundation of language and to present a spirit of collaboration and anticipation about what comes next. He moved to Canada with his family as a very young child, settling in Calgary. In 1959, he completed a BSc in zoology at the University of Idaho, and in 1961, he received a Japanese Government Foreign Scholarship to travel to Japan and study fine art with Kyoto University. He went on to earn an MEd from the University of Idaho (1962) and an MFA in painting (1964) from Washington State University. He has taught art since the 1960s and holds several honorary doctorates from Canadian universities. He is Professor Emeritus at the University of Windsor where he has taught in the Visual Arts Department since 1988.
Baxter& is widely known as an unorthodox and experimental conceptual artist. His work has been recognized for redefining conceptual art in Canada and nurturing new schools of practice. From 1966 to 1978, Baxter& and his then-wife, Ingrid Baxter, operated the Vancouver-based N.E. Thing Company, which they founded —using a corporate model — to produce, question and poke fun at art. Baxter& has used photography, sculpture, painting, drawing, installation and performance to create works that employ humour and critique to explore questions about modern perspectives and ways of living. He has focused on media and information systems; corporate, consumer and popular culture; technology; the environment; and sustainability. His career spans more than fifty years and includes exhibitions in major museums all over the world.
Iain Baxter& is an Officer of the Order of Canada (2003), a recipient of a Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts (2004) and the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize (2005) and is also a Companion of the Orders of Ontario (2004) and British Columbia (2007). Baxter& lives in Windsor, Ontario.
Compiled 2014
Baxter& is widely known as an unorthodox and experimental conceptual artist. His work has been recognized for redefining conceptual art in Canada and nurturing new schools of practice. From 1966 to 1978, Baxter& and his then-wife, Ingrid Baxter, operated the Vancouver-based N.E. Thing Company, which they founded —using a corporate model — to produce, question and poke fun at art. Baxter& has used photography, sculpture, painting, drawing, installation and performance to create works that employ humour and critique to explore questions about modern perspectives and ways of living. He has focused on media and information systems; corporate, consumer and popular culture; technology; the environment; and sustainability. His career spans more than fifty years and includes exhibitions in major museums all over the world.
Iain Baxter& is an Officer of the Order of Canada (2003), a recipient of a Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts (2004) and the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize (2005) and is also a Companion of the Orders of Ontario (2004) and British Columbia (2007). Baxter& lives in Windsor, Ontario.
Compiled 2014