Ian Forbes
Ian Forbes was formerly a painter and is now a multi-media and installation artist. He completed two degrees at the University of Alberta, a BFA (1991), and an MFA in Painting (1997). He also worked as a preparator at the AGA in Edmonton. Not comfortable with labels, he prefers to describe himself as an “object-maker with decadent/romantic leanings”. His works are often witty and humorous, with references to art history, literature, story-telling and the process of art-making.
How to Improve Your Chess was a solo exhibit at Latitude 53, Edmonton (2000), combining intimately personal objects found in the attic of Forbes’ home with objects from his own archive, creating a dialogue with the sentimental debris of lives lived.
Forbes then moved to Grande Prairie, teaching visual arts at Grande Prairie Regional College. Exploring his sense of newcomers’ lack of connection to the history and culture of the area, he created Morbid Anatomy, a multi-media show held at the Fringe Gallery on Whyte Avenue, Edmonton, in 2005. It documented the life of an epic – and fictional – Grande Prairie poet, “W.T. Morris”, a character invented from photos found in a pawnshop. Forbes created a website documenting Morris’ fantasy history and Forbes “discovery” of him, as well as outlining a three-volume work of Morris poetry, Cantos Ophelia. The Shakespearian title suggests the connection between truth and fiction, and the importance of story-telling in shaping our lives.
Forbes is now in Vancouver, teaching for the Emily Carr University of Art and Design’s Continuing Studies program, and at the Roundhouse Community Arts Centre. Calling himself a cultural industrialist, he continues to draw, paint, and “foldy book” (a verb). The discovery in an art supply shop of accordion-fold sketch books has changed Forbes’ practice: their uninterrupted format allows for injecting narrative into the 2-D world of painting. Forbes created his first Foldy Book of Death (“FBoD”) in 2009. His original motive for making art was to tell a story, and his Big Foldy Painting of Death, exhibited in 2014 at the Comox Visual Art Gallery, depicts apocalyptic doom and ecstatic rebirth. Assembled from earlier installations at Latitude 53 (2012) and Grunt Gallery (Vancouver, 2013), this long scroll is over 127 feet long. Renaissance figures comment in speech balloons on contemporary art, including high and low art forms, and address the viewer. It is a confluence of technique, critique and Forbes’ personal expression. It can be seen on his website, www.ianforbes.ca.
Forbes’ work has been shown in Canada and Europe, and features in permanent collections at the University of Alberta and Sintra Engineering,
How to Improve Your Chess was a solo exhibit at Latitude 53, Edmonton (2000), combining intimately personal objects found in the attic of Forbes’ home with objects from his own archive, creating a dialogue with the sentimental debris of lives lived.
Forbes then moved to Grande Prairie, teaching visual arts at Grande Prairie Regional College. Exploring his sense of newcomers’ lack of connection to the history and culture of the area, he created Morbid Anatomy, a multi-media show held at the Fringe Gallery on Whyte Avenue, Edmonton, in 2005. It documented the life of an epic – and fictional – Grande Prairie poet, “W.T. Morris”, a character invented from photos found in a pawnshop. Forbes created a website documenting Morris’ fantasy history and Forbes “discovery” of him, as well as outlining a three-volume work of Morris poetry, Cantos Ophelia. The Shakespearian title suggests the connection between truth and fiction, and the importance of story-telling in shaping our lives.
Forbes is now in Vancouver, teaching for the Emily Carr University of Art and Design’s Continuing Studies program, and at the Roundhouse Community Arts Centre. Calling himself a cultural industrialist, he continues to draw, paint, and “foldy book” (a verb). The discovery in an art supply shop of accordion-fold sketch books has changed Forbes’ practice: their uninterrupted format allows for injecting narrative into the 2-D world of painting. Forbes created his first Foldy Book of Death (“FBoD”) in 2009. His original motive for making art was to tell a story, and his Big Foldy Painting of Death, exhibited in 2014 at the Comox Visual Art Gallery, depicts apocalyptic doom and ecstatic rebirth. Assembled from earlier installations at Latitude 53 (2012) and Grunt Gallery (Vancouver, 2013), this long scroll is over 127 feet long. Renaissance figures comment in speech balloons on contemporary art, including high and low art forms, and address the viewer. It is a confluence of technique, critique and Forbes’ personal expression. It can be seen on his website, www.ianforbes.ca.
Forbes’ work has been shown in Canada and Europe, and features in permanent collections at the University of Alberta and Sintra Engineering,