On Thursday, October 12 at 7pm, join the award-winning artist and writer Allen Smutylo for a one-hour show and tell of some of the many places, cultures and themes that have acted as his creative muse. His talk will also explain the evolution, over the last half-century, of his approach with regard to the various mediums he has used.
The presentation will be followed by a Q & A. As well, signed copies of his books will be available.
ALLEN SMUTYLO - www.allensmutylo.com
Smutylo’s work has been based on extensive travels to some of the Earth’s most remote places. This includes eight years of depicting the extraordinary life of the nomads in the Central Himalaya.
Previous to that, he made over 20 sea kayaking and backpacking expeditions into the Canadian High Arctic and Greenland. Travels to the Amazon, the South Pacific, Rajasthan, the Ganges River, Antarctica, Central America, the West Coast of Africa and Patagonia also have been the inspiration for his etchings, and paintings in oil, watercolour and mixed media. His latest work is derived from the Altai Mountains of Mongolia where he lived with various nomadic families – the only remaining culture in the world that still hunts their prey on horseback with huge Golden Eagles.
Smutylo’s images often depicts aspects of a trip’s specific experience – this might include geophysical elements, land and marine biology, and figurative images portraying cultural life as well as the imprint of previous lives. These ideas are often juxtaposed with elements of collage, conveying a ‘land memory’ or a mythology of place.
His writing has complimented his artwork with the authoring of three books – each of which have been listed for either national or international awards. The Globe and Mail called his work and his writing “… a profound and poignant meditation on the connection between landscape and culture. …required reading.”
Allen Smutylo’s artwork is included in over 300 corporate and public collections. His work has been exhibited in dozens of solo shows and countless group shows nationally and internationally. He has won numerous awards including Graphex and the prestigious Sapparo International Print Biennial in Japan. His adventures and art were featured in Radio-Canada’s film The Last Frontier.
Allen Smutylo resides in Big Bay, Ontario.