Kurelek Country

by William Kurelek (Illustrator)

Edited by Avrom IsaacsBorn on a farm in Alberta in the 1920s, William Kurelek spent his childhood and youth on the Canadian Prairies, a land that he came to love in spite of the difficulties wrought by farm life. Later, Kurelek traveled from coast to coast and painted various parts of Canada with a distinct affection for the land and its people. This delightfully illustrated volume features images from a broad spectrum of the entire country. Kurelek`s endearing paintings depict charming, poignant and often humourous scenes from the everyday lives of Canadians--from lumberjacks enjoying a hearty breakfast in Northern Ontario to families celebrating the Sabbath in Montreal. His paintings also capture the landscapes of a country made up of many different parts--from the rugged shores of Newfoundland to the Banff-Jasper Highway that runs through the Rocky Mountains.Kurelek Country is a magnificent, personalized view of our nation. The artist`s father immigrated to Canada from the Ukraine, and the Ukrainian cultural heritage figures prominently in Kurelek`s work. So too do other diverse cultures, including the Polish and Irish in Canada. Kurelek is famous for his unique depictions of the many ethnic groups who settled this country.Kurelek`s own passionate writings accompany the paintings, which demonstrate that his art has always contained a deep, spiritual message. Culled from his autobiography and personal correspondence, Kurelek`s words add a compelling element to this collection. Kurelek Country also features a foreword by the respected art dealer Avrom Isaacs, who was instrumental in building the career of William Kurelek. Before emerging as one of Canada`s best-known artists, Kurelek worked as a framer at the Isaacs Gallery in Toronto to support himself and his family. (1999)

Genres: Art

127 pages, Hardcover

First published December 31, 1975

About the author

William Kurelek (Wasyl), painter and writer, evangelist. Influenced by Bosch and Brueghel and by prairie roots, his Ukrainian heritage and Roman Catholicism, Kurelek's realistic and symbolic paintings record his historic culture and religious vision. The oldest of 7 children, he was expected to help run the farm. His lack of mechanical aptitude attracted harsh criticism from his father, as did his wish to be an artist. He studied at Winnipeg, Toronto and San Miguel, Mexico. In England (1952-59), he sought psychiatric help and was hospitalized for severe emotional problems, depression and eye pain. He converted to Roman Catholicism (1957), credited God with his healing, and began to paint the Passion of Christ according to St Matthew. This series of 160 paintings is housed in the Niagara Falls Art Gallery and Museum.
Returning to Toronto, he was established by the early 1960s as an important painter, alternating realistic works depicting his prairie roots with didactic series. In the 1970s he began to publish his paintings with simple texts. His books for children (A Prairie Boy's Winter, 1973; Lumberjack, 1974; A Prairie Boy's Summer, 1975; and A Northern Nativity, 1976) have become modern classics. His autobiography, Someone With Me (1973, rev ed 1980), ends with his marriage to Jean Andrews (1962). Kurelek was an outstanding artist with a unique idealistic and pragmatic vision. A modern Jeremiah, he painted a coming apocalypse - divine justice on a materialistic, secular society.

Reviews

[Marcia Oster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great painted and drawn imagery of Canada's provinces.