Artist Homes: Inglewood

On March 29, 2003, I went on a tour of artist homes and studios in Calgary. Sponsored by the Triangle Gallery, it gave me the opportunity to see inside many abodes that I have often admired from the sidewalk. This home is the first home of eight in this series.

This homeowner is a painter. He does wonderful art scenes that are what I call: the Albertan style. This is art spurned by the vastness of the province as well as its muted colour beauty. The home is located in Inglewood, Calgary’s oldest residential area. The community came to be at the turn of the century when the families of the Northwest Mounted Police built their homes close to Fort Calgary. The Inglewood community has had an unsteady history over the years, bouncing from upscale to seedy at various points in its history. Its newest incarnation is trendy and in this area you see a lot of artists and tech companies cropping up.

The home itself is a contemporary style and someone in this house knows how to work colour. One of the things I got pleasure from was looking at random items thrown together for the sake of having two colours mix. For example, the kitchen is dark and menacing, but in the center of the room is a pink glass bowl, which completely throws off your initial impression. Only a colour master is able to do this successfully.

Next in the hallway is a mask on the wall, again, dark and menacing. But, under it is a yellow flower- which completely changes the impression from intimidating to irony. Flowers and plants are very much at home here, and no wonder — there are windows galore. The studio is every artist’s dream. Perched on top of the house it is full of light and leads out onto a patio that has a gorgeous view of the Elbow River. Here you can see paintings in a mix with the view that inspires him.