Legacy Article - Alex Janvier

A groundbreaking Alberta artist, Alex Janvier has been called one of Canada's most significant contemporary artists. His innovative, modernist style of painting has become a legacy not only for Albertans, but for the entire Canadian art scene.

Born in Le Goff, Alberta, Alex Janvier began exploring art while he was a student at Blue Quills Residential School near St. Paul, Alberta. He went on to graduate from the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and Art in Calgary (now the Alberta College of Art) with a diploma in Fine Arts in 1960. There, he experimented with a number of styles, including automatic painting and abstract expressionism. The influence of the subconscious on artmaking and the formal concerns of abstraction have stayed with Janvier throughout his career.

Janvier's work has international flair and appeal. Over the years, his paintings have been shown in a number of solo and group art exhibitions around the world. Major highlights have included an International Vatican Exhibition in Rome, a show at Gallery Anthropos in London in 1974, and participation in "Challenges" Holland Festival in Amsterdam in 1985. His work has been included in travelling exhibits to Brazil, Brussels, Paris, and New York. Although his art has received international recognition and exposure, Janvier continues to live and work right here in Alberta.

Critics and collectors alike consider him to be an important contemporary Canadian artist. Acclaimed nation-wide for his contributions to the art world, Janvier is highly regarded by his peers. Commissioned to paint the domed ceiling of the Canadian Museum of Civilization in 1992, he has been dubbed the "Canadian Michelangelo."

As a leading artist of Native heritage, Janvier has also been extremely instrumental in developing Native art in Alberta. Many Native artists acknowledge Janvier's work as an influential force in their development. While their styles and subject matter may differ from his images, his personality, success and generous spirit story have all been strong sources of inspiration for them. Janvier began painting at a time when • there were not many Native artists working in Canada. When he started at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and Art, he was the only Native student in his classes. During his years at the college, he distinguished himself by becoming one of the top students in his program. With the encouragement of his instructors, he remained dedicated to his art. Throughout his career, his continuing drive and determination have helped lead the way for a new generation of Native artists in this province.

Dan Hudon, owner of Edmonton's West End Gallery, which represents Janvier, agrees that Janvier himself as a person, and not only his work, deserves accolades as a cultural "treasure." Hudon praises Janvier's unique artistic talent claiming no other artist can match his distinctive style and the resulting impact of his paintings.

Blending his "unique artistic talent" with experiences drawn from his own life, Janvier creates a fascinating visual expression. His style has become his signature and instantly recognizable. While his paintings are abstract, they arise from real events which have affected him. Obviously, he is not a landscape painter in the traditional sense, yet his work is very much connected to the land. He speaks often about the influences of his surroundings and his strong sense of place. Inspired by significant moments, he conveys them through his images. In this way, his artistic style remains highly personal.

Although his work is non-representational, it incorporates symbols from his Native heritage. Traditional motifs mesh with the abstract. He often uses colour to express and evoke emotion. Circles represent the cycles of ?? There is an almost magical, hypnotic quality to his paintings, and the viewer is instantly drawn into the composition. Janvier's paintings seem almost alive, vibrant, and they engage the audience with their rhythm and flow. Lee-Ann Martin, guest curator for the Thunder Bay Art Gallery's exhibit The Art of Alex Janvier: His First Thirty Years describes Janvier's work: "The complex interplay of positive and negative space [produces] a dynamic tension and a sense of vitality that was synonymous with his...commitment to his art and his heritage." In an interview with Martin, Janvier talked about his work: "I think my painting reflects what people think and feel, rather than being an entity with a title and a subject. It's an open type of painting that means something different to every person who sees it."

Janvier cites Wassily Kandinsky and Paul Klee as two artists who have had a major influence on his work. Noting his free-flowing lines, characteristic bold colors and vivid abstract detail, viewers can see the impact of these two early 20th century artists.

Brenda Jones, the Transition Year Program Coordinator for Native Student Services at the University of Alberta, acclaims Janvier as a living legend. Jones, a working artist herself, also credits Janvier with "opening doors for Native artists" in Alberta and throughout Canada. She praises him for setting a stage where Native artists could be recognized on the basis of their work and not on their race.

"He proves that we can be modern, we can be abstract, essentially, we can be anything." In this way, she continues, Janvier has been instrumental in bringing Native art out of the context of "folk art" and into the spotlight as "high art." By example, he has proven that an artist can successfully integrate Western European techniques with traditional Native imagery, and according to Jones, this combination of two cultures is something many Native ^ artists strive to achieve in their work. "It incorporates two worlds. Many native artists want to do this, but struggle" she explains, "He made it OK to incorporate them." Jones goes on to explain how this does not mean a loss of "Nativeness" for the artist. She tells of the conversation she had with Janvier, and recalls him defining what Native art means to him. According to Janvier, if the artist is Native then the piece would be Native art—regardless of the subject, style, or form. Janvier has reinforced this in the statement he made for the Thunder Bay Art Gallery's exhibition catalogue "I am an artist who happens to be an Indian. I am an Indian self that is identified with the Great Spirit and not with the art."

A modernist painter and a First Nations artist who has made tremendous contributions to the Canadian art scene, Alex Janvier's artistic vision has brought recognition to Alberta art and more specifically to the work and potential of Native artists in this province. He has pushed the limits of art, and in doing so has galvanized a generation of artists to follow in his footsteps. Many people agree, Alex Janvier is truly a cultural hero.