Beacon Hill Park

Beacon Hill Park, ca. 1985. Mixed media study sketch by Philip Mix

Beacon Hill Park, ca. 1985. Mixed media study sketch by Philip Mix

Name/Title

Beacon Hill Park

Entry/Object ID

2018.08.17

Description

Painting This image of a view through a grove of trees depicts Victoria’s 200-acre Beacon Hill Park, one of downtown Victoria’s crown jewels officially opened in 1882. The image is a careful composition showing a flowered meadow-like green space interspersed with slender grey tree trunks and a large rocky outcrop to the right.

Artwork Details

Medium

Mixed media study sketch

Subject Place

Region

Pacific Northwest

Continent

North America

Context

The name 'Beacon Hill' is derived from a hill upon which once stood navigational beacons to aid to mariners approaching Victoria’s inner harbour. The hill is culturally significant, having been a burial site for the Coast Salish people, the original inhabitants of the region. The park provides scenic vistas of Juan de Fuca Strait in the Salish Sea and the Olympic Mountains of Washington state in the U.S.

Made/Created

Artist Information

Artist

Philip Mix

Role

Artist

Date made

circa 1985

Time Period

20th Century

Notes

ARTIST STATEMENT "My paintings are intentionally spare and dispassionate. They are a study in reduction: in economy of line, confined design, select chords of colour and minimized depth of field. My desire is to produce an artwork that is beautiful for its singleness of purity and purpose: the elegance of simplicity. I choose subjects whose form or function lends itself to the discovery of some intrinsic beauty; a beauty that becomes intriguing once the inherent grace of its form has been recognized and captured." ARTIST BIOGRAPHY Born in Edmonton Alberta, Philip Mix is a Canadian artist who received his Bachelor of Arts in painting from the Alberta College of Art, Calgary in 1980. He apprenticed in art conservation in Calgary, later continuing his training at Museum Services in California. He operated a conservation studio in Victoria B.C. from 1986 to 2011. He painted in France and later went to Israel and Cyprus and established a gallery and studio, also lecturing at the Cyprus College of Art. The collective paintings from this period were shown by Cadogan Gallery in London, England. He returned to Vancouver Island and later retired from paintings conservation, building a home art studio in Chemainus, B.C. Mix works primarily in oil and demonstrates a Modern art aesthetic. Currently represented by several B.C., Alberta and Ontario galleries, he has shown his work locally and internationally in Victoria, Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary, Santa Cruz, London, Cyprus and Israel.

Inscription/Signature/Marks

Type

Signature, Date, Label

Location

Signed and dated lower left: MIX/87

Transcription

Paper label verso frame: Subject: Philip Mix oil on paper Hi, This was a preliminary sketch for an idea I was working on based on pictures of Beacon Hill Park. I think it was one my friend Roderick Payne wanted and I gave it to him. His estate was sold after his premature death, and I wonder if you got it through that venue. There were two or three similar explorations but I never went back to the loose abstraction in the work you have. I’m glad you like it. Thanks for the inquiry. Sorry not to be more helpful. Philip Mix

Dimensions

Dimension Description

Visible image

Height

27.9 cm

Width

45.7 cm

Acquisition

Acquisition Method

Purchase

Date

Mar 22, 2016

Notes

Lunds Lot # 582

Relationships

Related Entries

Notes

2014.07.03 Beacon Hill Park (MIA) 2014.08.03 Beacon Hill and Olympics 2017.05.09 Beacon Hill Park 2018.08.17 Beacon Hill Park 2024.10.01 Olympic Mountains Through Beacon Hill Park