Artist Information
Artist
Glenn Edward Howarth, RCA (1946-2009)Role
PainterDate made
1985Time Period
20th CenturyNotes
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY
Alberta-born Glenn Edward Howarth was prominent western Canadian painter, draughtsman, educator, writer and pioneer in computer art. He moved to Victoria in the 1960s and attended the University of Victoria, earning a Fine Arts degree in 1970 studying under Donald Harvey, Peter Kahn. and others. Of note, it was during this formative period that Howarth began to experiment with painting on circular-shaped canvases. He dedicated himself to both art and teaching in the early 1970s and remained a fixture in the local art scene for some 40 years. He worked in a variety of media including oil, acrylic, charcoal and pencil, and his work including figural paintings, landscapes, architecture, still-life, as well as marine and industrial scenes.
Howarth taught at a number of institutions such as the University of Saskatchewan, Victoria College of Art, University of Victoria, Banff School of Fine Arts, Cariboo College and Acadia University. He also lectured widely across the country including at the Ontario College of Art, York University, British Columbia Institute of Technology, Alberta College of Art, Concordia University and more.
He was considered an innovator far ahead of his times. In 1982, attached to the University of Victoria, he began working on computer graphics. The Canadian government awarded Howarth with a National Research Council grant in 1983 and he represented Canada in the graphic arts section at the São Paulo Biennale that year. He had a studio for many years in Fan Tan Alley in Victoria where he founded the Victoria Drawing Academy. His writings were published in major Canadian newspapers and his artworks were included in many exhibitions from the early 1970s across Canada for multiple decades, including two solo shows at the Art Gallery of Great Victoria. He also appeared as a featured artist at the annual "Painters at Painter's Lodge" event in Campbell River, B.C. for eight years. His works are held in many permanent collections such as the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, University of Victoria, Vancouver Art Gallery, Mendel Art Gallery (Saskatchewan) and the Canada Council Art Bank.
