| ARTIST BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: | Alan Reynolds is a long-time Edmonton artist with an international reputation for abstract expressionism. He is primarily known as a sculptor, working initially in laminated wood. He was encouraged in his early career by the American sculptor Michael Steiner, with whom he studied at Bennington College in Vermont. Barnett Newman, Jules Olitski and Clement Greenberg were also influential. Reynolds adopted welded steel in the 1980s, a material he understands intimately from having worked in the fabrication industry. He gradually moved from creating abstract cylindrical shapes, reminiscent of everyday objects and functional pottery, to more anthropomorphic forms, or body pieces. Shadow Venus (2005) or Proud Mary (2006) are flattened, abstracted nudes, of welded fabricated steel, whose front and back views still also conjure up the edges of a third dimension. He also created a series of ‘horse pieces’ in which the horse form is downplayed in relation to the vivid colours and glazes of its saddle and blanket.
Reynolds was represented for many years by the Douglas Udell Gallery. In 1990, a survey exhibition of his work was organized at the then-Edmonton Art Gallery, entitled Inner Motifs: Fifteen Years of Exploration. In 2010, one of his body pieces won the fifth annual design competition, Sculpture by Invitation, a partnership between the Shaw conference Centre and The Places Art & Design in Public Places program, designed to revitalize Edmonton’s downtown.
In recent years, Alan has moved outside Edmonton to the country, where he has built his own house and studio. Here he has turned his attention to his new environment, working on steel ‘plant sculptures’, applying zinc or copper patinas that are influenced by the colours and nuances of the landscape in different seasons and conditions. He has also turned to the art of earlier periods, particularly the art of ancient Greece, of Africa and Polynesia, and of the Tang Dynasty in China, cultures in which sculpture flourished. He continues with his horse pieces, and is also exploring painting, favouring oils, a medium which allows time for reflection.
Reynolds has been an important mentor to younger artists and has had substantial influence in Edmonton’s artistic community. He continues to evolve in his work, and to exhibit with the new iteration of the Udell Gallery in Edmonton. His work can be seen in such institutions as Alberta Government House, Edmonton; Alberta House, New York City; the Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto; the Canada Council Art Bank, Ottawa; the Mendel Art Gallery, Saskatoon; and at the Winspear Centre in Edmonton. His works feature in many private collections across Canada and internationally, including in the US, the UK, Australia, Spain, Hong Kong and South Africa.
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