November 12, 2008
Important Paintings from the 1960s and ‘70s Garnered International Attention for Self-Taught Artist from Saskatchewan’s Red Pheasant Reserve
RARELY-AVAILABLE WORKS BY CREE ARTIST ALLEN SAPP TO BE EXHIBITED AT WINNIPEG’S MAYBERRY FINE ART
Important Paintings from the 1960s and ‘70s Garnered International Attention
for Self-Taught Artist from Saskatchewan’s Red Pheasant Reserve
WINNIPEG – A collection of rarely available works by celebrated Cree artist Allen Sapp will go on exhibition and sale beginning this Saturday at Mayberry Fine Art in Winnipeg’s historic Exchange District.
The exhibition, entitled Allen Sapp The Early Years – Innovative Works from the 1960s and ‘70s, features 25 paintings which depict life on the reserve during that era. Sapp’s recent work is readily available to collectors, but rarely are his paintings from this time period offered for sale since most are held in the collections of corporations and public galleries, including the National Gallery of Canada.
Prices range from $2,000 to $14,000 for The Early Years pieces on display through November 29 at Mayberry Fine Art. Saturday’s official opening goes from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sapp, a descendent of Cree Chief Poundmaker, was born in 1929 and grew up on the Red Pheasant Reserve near North Battleford, Saskatchewan. Due to frail health, Sapp was often house-bound as a child. He learned to draw and paint as a way of giving expression to his world.
Distinguished as an Officer of the Order of Canada (1987) and elected member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (1975), the self-taught artist with a photographic memory paints scenes of daily life solely from his recollections.
“Many artists of his generation have periods of time when they come into their own,” said Bill Mayberry, who first became aware of Sapp’s paintings around 1973. “I believe Allen Sapp produced his most important works in the ’60s and ‘70s. These works could be described as primitive, yet honest and insightful.
“The paintings in our exhibition look back on Sapp’s beginnings – the work which rapidly brought him to international attention. They provided a strong foundation for subsequent works. His overall body of work has made a great contribution to Canadian art,” Mayberry added.
The majority of paintings in the show were acquired by Dr. June Mills-Benson during the 19 years she worked in North Battleford with her partner Dr. Allan Gonor , who discovered and promoted Sapp’s talent and his art. As Sapp’s mentor and benefactor, Dr. Gonor often brought him paints and canvas when the artist could not afford to buy them. The Allen Sapp Gallery – The Gonor Collection opened in 1989 in North Battleford three years after the doctor’s death. At the time, Sapp, now a resident of North Battleford, was the only living artist to have a museum dedicated to his work.
Dr. Mills-Benson, now living in British Columbia, will be in Winnipeg for the show’s opening reception on Saturday and will give a talk about her long-time friendship with Sapp. Mills-Benson has also provided two albums full of photos, invitations, newspaper clippings, and other memorabilia from this important era in Sapp’s career. Gallery visitors can peruse the albums which provide a unique window into Sapp’s early career.
“As a physician working among Allen Sapp’s people – the Cree of the Red Pheasant Reserve -- I was intimately acquainted with their everyday lives, often sorrowful and surviving in abject poverty. It is this deep connection that led me to acquire these paintings,” said Dr. Mills-Benson, who last visited with Sapp in North Battleford two years ago.
Sapp’s life and career as an artist, and the many challenges he faced in both, were the subject of CBC and National Film Board documentaries in 1972 and 1973, respectively.
Sapp’s poor health prevented him from attending school and he never learned to read and write, but expressed himself through his art. University of Saskatchewan art professor Winona Mulcaster was introduced to Sapp’s paintings by Dr. Gonor and, subsequently, became his advisor and advocate. Her support led to Sapp’s first one-man exhibition at the Mendel Gallery in Saskatoon in 1968. Interest in his work grew and, within two years, he had six shows in Canada, California and England.
Sapp was awarded the Saskatchewan Order of Merit in 1985 and a National Aboriginal Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999. Several books have been published about Sapp, including Two Spirits Soar by W.P. Kinsella in 1990.
Mayberry Fine Art opened its main gallery in January, 2003, in a century-old-building in Winnipeg’s historic Exchange District. Located at 212 McDermot Avenue, the gallery represents a select group of contemporary Canadian artists such as Winnipeg’s Wanda Koop and Andrew Valko, Surrey’s Robert Genn, Saskatchewan’s Joe Fafard, and Ottawa’s Rose-Aimee Belanger, in addition to its significant activity in the historical art market.
The Mayberry’s semi-virtual, satellite gallery, featuring touchscreen technology which provides access to some 2000 works of art, opened in Winnipeg Square in the summer of 2008. Visit www.mayberryfineart.com to learn more.