Telford Fenton (1932-2004)

Artist we never hear much about
Telford Fenton (1932-2004)
I didn't know Telford very well met him at openings and the pilot and The Brunswick- He was mostly too drunk to talk to. I am sure I met him at his worst. but he had something and certainly a lot of friends. I did have a few conversations with him mostly troubled - Gay , broke frustrated etc. But when i saw his art I was amazed he really made some fine art.
I have a photo of him somewhere cant find it

Born in Chesley, Ontario in 1932, Telford Fenton was a daring and passionate artist whose art reached a maturity that secured him a serious position in Canadian art history. His energetic, spontaneous touch and strong colour sense combined to create painterly works that were like good improvisation; engaging, unexpected and strangely familiar.

Fenton came out of the second generation of Toronto abstract painters. His contemporaries, Graham Coughtry, Gordon Rayner and Richard Gorman are among those who inspired Fenton in his formative years. He was also influenced Abstract Expressionism, particularly the works of Jackson Pollock, and German Expressionism where the focus is on pure painting and the evocation of an emotional response.

Fenton experienced a major hiatus in his artistic career from about 1962 through 1971 during which he drank heavily, suffered a heart attack and underwent open-heart surgery. He was able to overcome this personal crisis to resume his career and carried on to produce a remarkable body of work.

Fenton’s paintings speak of pure joy and demonstrate a constant reaffirmation of life. He was a master draftsman, handling oil paint with remarkable virtuosity, literally drawing with his colour-loaded brush. His bold colours were often squeezed directly from the tube. His compositions were strong and lyrical. Fenton was versatile in his subject matter whether he painted still-life, landscapes, dramatic New York scenes or vibrant portraiture. Fenton’s paintings can be found in private collections in Canada, the United States, Brazil, Great Britain, and Australia and in the collections of Jackson Pollock, Donald Trump, Patrick Watson and Donald Sutherland.