Artist Info
Dwight Arthur
Dwight is a life-long resident of Red Deer, Alberta. He took an early interest in his father’s darkroom, even as a small child. He studied commercial art in high school, but is otherwise self-taught in both art and photography. His primary areas of interest have always been landscape, nature, and the vanishing architecture, such as the granaries and barns, of the prairie agricultural settler era before it is replaced by steel and glass.
His initial work was in photography and in hyper-realist ink-on-paper drawings, using a painstaking pointillist technique, although he later transitioned to watercolours. He earned his living as a commercial photographer and graphic designer with Focus Design, and was the owner for ten years of Parkland Illustrators, Red Deer. His current work is primarily photographic. He has taught, and continues to teach, photography, both at Red Deer College and through his private studio, alongside work as a freelance commercial photographer. His focus is always on clear communication. He remains interested in painting, however, particularly in the Impressionists.
Arthur’s work has long been exhibited, as he won photography competitions even as a teenager. His themes included abandoned houses and barns, often focusing his visual field on a door or window. He had a one-man show at Chapman Galleries in Red Deer as early as 1976, followed by various City of Red Deer Arts and Culture-sponsored exhibits, plus participation in a collective show at the Bilton Contemporary Art Gallery in Red Deer. He has pieces in the Red Deer College of Art Permanent Collection, the Alberta Foundation of the Arts Collection, plus many private collections.
