Brian Holden
printmaker and visual artist
Biography
Encouraged at a young age to explore my creative nature I ultimately ended up studying visual arts in community college. Since then exploration on my own has also played an integral part of the accumulated knowledge and developed skills as a visual artist.
I have been an active visual artist/printmaker for nearly 30 years with my paintings and prints included in many group exhibitions in both regional and out of town gallery spaces. Pencil renderings, acrylic and watercolour paintings were the first to capture the attention of the public and critics in the early 1980’s. Since then my creative explorations have expanded to include relief and intaglio printmaking with an emphasis on use of safe materials and procedures.
Several years ago I made the decision to offer my printmaking knowledge and skills to give experience to others. Many have learned to make prints on paper and fabric in private & public workshops as well as from classroom instruction.
Born in 1959 - self-employed printmaker, artist, arts educator residing in Thunder Bay, Ontario since 1980.
Education
- Orangeville District Secondary School, Orangeville ON Graduate Grade 13 diploma 1978
- Sheridan College, Brampton Ontario - Visual Art Fundamentals 1978 - 1979
- Thunder Bay Art Gallery/Lakehead University workshop in intaglio printmaking with instructor George Raab 1982
- Self-taught through experimentation, reading, exchanges with peers.
Exhibitions and Awards
- 2012 - Thunder Bay Art Gallery - solo exhibition
- 2011 - Calico Coffee House - Wilderness - selection of prints - solo show - Thunder Bay ON
- 2011 - Ontario Arts Council - Artist in Education project grant
- 2010 - Pictograph Gallery - Wilderness: Studies from Northwestern Ontario
- solo show - Atikokan ON - 2010 - Gallery Stratford - Water Mark
- group show with Gerard Brender A Brandis and Lucinda Jones - Stratford ON - 2009 - Lakehead Visual Arts - annual group exhibition (ongoing since 1984) - Thunder Bay ON
- 2008 - Ontario Arts Council - Emerging Artist grant, Northern Arts grant, Artist in Education grant
- 2008 - Definitely Superior Gallery - 20th Anniversary Members show (juried) - Thunder Bay ON
- 2008 - Ottawa School of Art - Biennial Miniature Print Invitational - Ottawa ON
- 2008 - Naestved International Miniature Print Exhibition - Grafisk Vaerksted Print Studio - Ronnebaeksholm Arts and Culture Centre - Naestved, Denmark
- 2007 - Definitely Superior Gallery - Change Change (regional juried exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 2006 - Thunder Bay Art Gallery - Thirty Points of light (curators selection juried exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 2006 - Definitely Superior Gallery - Contact (regional juried exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 2004 - Thunder Bay Art Gallery - Art for All (regional exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 1991 & 1992 - Emergence/See – Definitely Superior and Marina Gallery - organizer & participating artist in independent exhibition - Thunder Bay ON
- 1989 - Jonathon Bancroft Snell - private exhibition and sale - London ON (solo)
- 1983 - Thunder Bay Art Gallery - Art Affairs North (juried exhibition) – honourable mention - Thunder Bay ON
- 1983 - St. Joseph's Heritage - Art Happening (regional exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 1982 - St. Joseph's Heritage - Art Happening (regional exhibition) - Thunder Bay ON
- 1982 - Canadian Lakehead Exhibition - first place/ drawing - Thunder Bay ON
Art Educator History
- Nov./Dec. 2011 - Artist in Education (Ontario Arts Council grant project)
- St. Marin's School, Thunder Bay - Grades 4 and 6 - Sept./Oct. 2011 - Artist in Education (Ontario Arts Council grant project)
- North Star Community School, Atikokan, ON Grades 3-5 - January 2011 - CAHEP Artist in the Fifth - Corpus Christi School, Thunder Bay
- multiple session relief block printmaking with grade five students - December 2010 - CAHEP Artist in the Fifth - St. Ann School, Thunder Bay
- multiple session relief block printmaking with grade 5 students - February 2010 - RBC/CAHEP After school project - Corpus Christi School, Thunder Bay
- multiple session project in jigsaw relief based printmaking - December 2009 - RBC/CAHEP After school project - Algonquin School, Thunder Bay
- multiple session project in jigsaw relief based printmaking - December 2009 - CAHEP Artist in the Fifth - St. Ann School, Thunder Bay
- multiple session collagraph printmaking with grade 5 students - May/June 2009 - Artist in Education (Ontario Arts Council grant project)
- Red Rock Public/St. Hilary Catholic School Red Rock ON - multiple session printmaking project
- Connections: An Influence of Group of Seven Landscapes
- relief landscape prints produced by grade six - eight students - April 2009 - RBC/CAHEP After School project - Corpus Christi school
- multiple sessions in clay relief paintings with special needs students - February 2009 - Crestview Public School Murillo ON
- styrofoam relief printmaking workshop for grades one - five students - February 2008 - CAHEP Artist in the Fifth - Corpus Christi School, Thunder Bay
- multiple sessions creating relief print mosaic murals with grade five students - January 2008 - RBC/CAHEP After School project - St. Paul Catholic School
- multiple sessions in collagraph printmaking with special needs youth - November 2007 - Lakehead Unitarian Fellowship - workshop in relief printmaking
- May 2007 - CAHEP/RBC After School Program - Ogden Community School
- multiple sessions in relief printmaking with special needs youth - January 2007 – Lakehead Unitarian Fellowship – t-shirt painting/printing workshop
- January 2007 - Artist in the Classroom - St. Elizabeth School
- multiple session styrofoam block printing project with grades four to six students - October 2006 - Painted Turtle/Rainge Gallery
- multiple session intaglio printmaking workshop for adults - March 2006 - GrannArt Centre for the Arts
- workshop all ages in block relief printing - January/February 2006 - CAHEP Artists in the fifth - Corpus Christi school
- multiple session jigsaw block printing project with grade five students - September 2005 - Painted Turtle/ Rainge Gallery
- multiple session block printing workshop for adults - July 2005 - Sleeping Giant Provincial Park - Art in the Park
(Definitely Superior Gallery/ Ontario Parks shared event)
- workshop in styrofoam block printing - all ages - April 2005 - Painted Turtle/ Rainge Gallery
- multiple session screen printing workshop - Feb 2005 - St. Bernard School
- styrofoam printmaking with grade two students - Nov 1993 - Lakehead Visual Arts Club - workshop for screen printing
