EDWARD EPP, "Mystic North," March, 2009, Marion Scott Gallery, Vancouver

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"Autumn Sky, Skeena - West of Terrace"

Edward Epp, "Autumn Sky, Skeena - West of Terrace," 2006, acrylic on canvas, 56" X 71".

EDWARD EPP, Mystic North

Marion Scott Gallery, Vancouver

March, 2009

By Jill Sawyer

Among the most scenic corners of Canada, the northwest coast of British Columbia, where the city of Prince Rupert occupies a series of forested hills at the mouth of the Skeena River, presents an endless supply of inspiration for a painter. Based in Prince Rupert, landscape painter Edward Epp has taken in the grand scenery, with its heavy storms, soaring conifers, and ancient cultural heritage, and given it an abstract, colour-washed quality. By blurring the lines, he emphasizes the spirit and culture of the region, the mystical timelessness of that coastal world. “The mystical side of nature was an important feature to many early modernists, including our own Emily Carr, yet the expression of such spiritual concerns in art has become less fashionable in recent times,” says the Marion Scott Gallery’s Robert Kardosh. “Epp is a contemporary artist who still senses the importance and ongoing relevance of the spiritual side of human existence.” Originally from Saskatoon, Epp has been painting for more than 20 years in northwestern BC, occasionally venturing up to the arctic, where he has painted with a plein air technique, capturing the immediacy of the scene in front of him, even for oversized canvases. He travels to the remote reaches of the Kitimat River Valley, and to the remnants of Haida culture on Haida Gwaii, and to the working port of his home city, creating a bold sense of a moment in time, layered with multiple meanings.

Represented by: Marion Scott Gallery, Vancouver; Agnes Bugera Gallery, Edmonton; Summit Gallery, Calgary; Odin Gallery, Vernon, BC