From the Editor - January 17, 2023 Issue

January 16, 2023

9:30 PM

Western Canada's art magazine since 2002

Portia Priegert

From the Editor

Quick quiz: How many visual artists in Canada spend most of their work hours making art? Take a guess, then read on ...

Roughly 21,500 people are painters, sculptors or work in other artistic media, according to an analysis of 2021 census data by Kelly Hill, of Hill Strategies Research.

That figure does not include some 20,500 photographers and 19,600 craftspeople.

Is that lower than you expected?

Bear in mind that the census basically excludes artists who have other jobs to which they devote more time. This likely skews the numbers to the low side as many artists need day jobs to help pay the bills. If, for example, you spent 24 hours a week working at a restaurant, and 16 in the studio, the census would categorize you under food services, even if you have earned an MFA and are having exhibitions at respected galleries.

Counting all types of artists – including musicians, writers, actors and the like – the census identified some 200,000 people. Hill says that means about one in every hundred members of the Canadian workforce are artists of one type or another.

Much thanks to Hill, who regularly supplies my inbox with interesting insights into the numbers behind Canada’s art ecosystem.

Moving on to this first issue of 2023, look for Douglas Maclean’s semi-annual comprehensive roundup of recent art auctions across Canada. We’ve added plenty of images of historical works, along with the prices they fetched when the hammer came down.

We’re also getting back to reviewing shows following December’s two annual themed issues on art books and year-end features. Laura St. Pierre checks out gorgeous Métis art at the Remai Modern in Saskatoon, Paul Gessell looks at – and listens to – fascinating Inuit art with a musical theme at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and Yani Kong learns about disability arts activism at the Vancouver Art Gallery.

We also feature two shows in Winnipeg. Alison Gillmor writes about an interesting group show, Headlines, at the Winnipeg Art Gallery that includes artists who work with materials and concepts related to the news media, and Lindsay Inglis explores socially and politically engaged work by Black artists at the School of Art Gallery at the University of Manitoba.

I also encourage you to check out our recent news coverage for Paul Gessell’s obituary for one of Canada’s leading artists, Michael Snow, as well reports on art heists in Vancouver and Victoria, and our regular biweekly news digest, which is headlined by Anishinaabe artist Rebecca Belmore’s new installation at the Polygon Gallery in North Vancouver.

Looking ahead, we are working on reviews of Jaimie Isaac’s Winnipeg exhibition about the legacies of colonialism, and a Vancouver group show about the garden as a site of resistance.

Until next time,