#roydenmills

L: Al D. Girvan, 1966 R: Dwayne Martineau, 2012

It all began with a “spaghetti tree”. When Edmonton city planners commissioned The Migrants for the 1957 incarnation of City Hall, they sparked a lively six-decade conversation.

The bronze sculpture, which remains as one of 64 artworks at City Hall, formed the kernel of a collection that now contains 239 artworks by 302 artists. Of that, nearly 70% of the artists are local (or were at the time of selection). Our collection spans a myriad of mediums rendered in ancient techniques like mosaic as well as cutting-edge 21st century technology.

The City of Edmonton implemented C458c -  Percent to Encourage and Provide Art in Public Areas Policy – aka “Percent for Art” – 25 years ago, in order to ensure the new City Hall would contain artworks by, for, and about Edmontonians. The Migrants – temporarily slated for “retirement” – was re-installed on the west side of the building following an outcry from citizens saying they would miss the iconic artwork. Since then, the City of Edmonton Public Art Collection has grown exponentially. City projects – including LRT, recreation centres, police and fire stations, parks, streetscapes, renovations, bridges, libraries, sports facilities, transit centres (to name a few) – are catalysts for new artistic visions that continue to animate our conversations.

In 2017, the Edmonton Arts Council Public Art team installed six new artworks and are managing more than 20 new and ongoing projects. The Conservation team repaired, cleaned, and maintained dozens of artworks including restoration of the Norman Yates mural. The EAC was honoured to receive recognition from Americans for the Arts (Public Art Network Year in Review – Amiskwâcîw Wâskâyhkan Ihtâwin, Destiny Swiderski); Creative City Network of Canada (Public Art Award of Excellence – Tsa Tsa Ke K’e [Iron Foot Place], Alex Janvier) and the Edmonton Urban Design Awards (Award of Excellence, Urban Fragments - Amiskwâcîw Wâskâyhkan Ihtâwin, Destiny Swiderski; Award of Merit, Urban Fragments – Tsa Tsa Ke K’e [Iron Foot Place], Alex Janvier; Award of Merit, Community Projects - #YEGCanvas in partnership with Pattison Outdoor Advertising, various artists).

2018 promises to be just as busy!

Read on for profiles of the new art; join us in the new year for previews of Calder Library, ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW) River Lot 11∞, Tawatinâ Bridge and more.

Sometimes, Always, Even – April Dean (Paul Kane Park) This artwork connects park users to time and place as they enjoy the granite water feature in this downtown park. The words continuously flow around the water feature in a formally minimalist font, allowing an intimate experience of discovery across the white granite surface.

Thing 1 & Thing 2 – Lisa Turner & Paul Bernhardt (West Edmonton Mall Transit Centre) Mysterious pink and green objects glow from the walls of the WEM Transit Centre – investigating the relationship between advertising, product design, and the objects we desire. The artists were inspired by the art’s location, adjacent to one of the world’s largest malls, and drew on theories of psychology and consumer product silhouettes to create these low relief panels.

Turbulent – Jill Anholt (100 Street Funicular, Downtown) These turquoise metal ribbons are inspired by the swirling forms, and twisting, turning shapes that appear along the edges of water currents in the North Saskatchewan River. They are integrated onto the concrete benches at the funicular site and offer a playful opportunity for pedestrians to pause, sit, lounge, and have a face to face conversation with a friend or experience a chance meeting with a stranger.

Heart of the Valley – Black Artifex (Whitemud Equine Learning Centre) This intricate, pyrographed mural is inspired by the history of the equine centre site and setting in the river valley. The designs and motifs incorporated throughout are inspired by “western aesthetics” such as leather tooling, wood craft, and branding. The artwork is burned directly into the cedar siding adjacent to the main entrance, inviting viewers to touch and explore.

Esprit – Pierre Poussin (Alex Decoteau Park, Downtown) This red abstract sculpture celebrates the spirit of Alex Decoteau, Canada’s first Indigenous police officer; World War I veteran; Olympian, and first inductee to Edmonton’s Sports Hall of Fame. Composed of metal ribbons that intersect in fluidity, the sculpture evokes the silhouette of a man mid-sprint.

Resonant Progression – Royden Mills (Terwillegar Off-Leash Area) This artwork by Edmonton sculptor Royden Mills, consists of three sculptures placed in conceptually linked sites in Terwillegar Park. The sculptural components link the viewer now with a sense of history and the sounds of nature, as well as inviting contemplation and play. Each sculpture - Potential, Resonant Point, and Beyond Listening, contains an acoustic element that animates the site.

Borden Art Park Temporary Sculpture Loan Exhibition – Sandra Bromley, Kasie Campbell, Agnieszka Koziarz, Susan Owen Kagan This year, the sculptures featured within Borden Park changed. The new exhibition, featuring 11 artworks, represents more than 30 years of artmaking by women artists in Edmonton. The Temporary Sculpture Loan Program is part of the Edmonton Arts Council’s Transitory Art programming.

(Potential - first sculpture of the Resonant Progression installation in Terwillegar Park ~ photo, Royden Mills)

Americans for the Arts today honored 49 outstanding public arts projects created in 2017 through the Public Art Network Year in Review program, the only national program that specifically recognizes the most compelling public art. Chosen by public art experts, the roster of selected projects was unveiled this morning at Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention in Denver. This is the 17th year that Americans for the Arts has recognized public art works.

Resonant Progression, created by Edmonton sculptor Royden Mills, consists of three sculptures placed in conceptually linked sites throughout Terwillegar Park. The sculptural components link the viewer with the site’s history and the sounds of nature, while offering an invitation to slow down and immerse in time and nature’s tempo.

(Resonant Point - second Resonant Progression sculpture - photo, Royden Mills)

“The sculptures, Potential, Resonant Point, and Beyond Listening, each offer a figurative and literal connection to a ‘resonant progression’,” explains Mills. “My intent was to metaphorically respond to the site, and through the inclusion of acoustic properties within each, construct a literal resonance. The sculptures are low-tech and rugged, marrying hand-welded steel with granite boulders I hand-selected from the Edmonton area. I envision it as a place where families may joyfully play for generations”.

“The best of public art can challenge, delight, educate, and illuminate. Most of all, public art creates a sense of civic vitality in the cities, towns, and communities we inhabit and visit,” said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. “As these Public Art Network Year in Review selections illustrate, public art has the power to enhance our lives on a scale that little else can. I congratulate the artists and commissioning groups for these community treasures, and I look forward to honoring more great works in the years to come.”

(Beyond Listening, the final stop in the Resonant Progression journey ~ photo, Royden Mills)

Sunny skies, shady trees, swooping dragonflies, and intriguing art have lured families and friends to Borden Park over the past month. A cluster of five works creates an oasis of calm by the formal fountains located adjacent to the Borden Park band shell. A further six works are nestled in the trees along the path meandering through the park.

Borden Park has a long history in Edmonton as a gathering place. Over the past century it has contained a zoo, an amusement park, and public swimming pools. The inclusion of art is the latest chapter and creates an exciting vibe – Borden Park seems to be a new favourite hangout with visitors taking selfies with the works, creating Vines and picnicking by their favourite sculpture.

What are these works, and where did they come from?

In addition to two permanent installations Willow and (soon-to be installed) Gigi, the remaining  sculptures are part of a new public program – the Borden ArtPark. The “ArtPark” is a transitory, or temporary, program that encourages casual encounters with art in a public setting.

Senior local artists – artists with an established career, and a large body of work – were shortlisted by a selection committee and invited to participate in this sculpture loan program. The committee considered artists with an inventory of completed works suitable for outdoor display.

Each selected artist is an educator and innovator within the Edmonton community in addition to having an international career. The sculptures will be on display throughout Borden Park until June 2016. Each will return to the artist, making way for a new exhibition of works by a new group of sculptors.

Walking through the park and experiencing the work of these sculptors is like walking through a timeline of Edmonton art history.  The four artists featured throughout the park are linked by close connections to some of the most influential modernist sculptors of the 20th century and have, as educators, shaped several generations of Edmonton’s visual artists. However, each imparts a distinct personal style to the modern abstract sculpture genre.

British-born Peter Hide is has distinguished himself as one of the world’s foremost practitioners of modern welded steel sculpture. He works in the “assembled sculpture” tradition of Pablo Picasso and his mentor Sir Anthony Caro.  Following studies at the St. Martin School of Art and numerous exhibitions in London, he accepted a position at the University of Alberta and moved to Edmonton in 1977. As head of the U of A sculpture program, he has been influential the training and development of many Edmonton artists, and his influence can be seen in many of the abstract sculptures around Edmonton. His sculptures are included in numerous collections, including London’s Tate Gallery.

Form and Content (1988)

Mariposa

Gaekwar of Baroda

Royden Mills studied at the University of Alberta under Peter Hide and enjoyed an in-depth assistantship with Sir Anthony Caro. Initially trained as an architect, Mills is deeply influenced by his studies in Eastern and Buddhist philosophy and a three-year stint in Japan. His large, monolithic but peaceful artworks are featured in sculpture parks throughout North America including Franconia Sculpture Park (Shafer, MN), Windsor, ON, and the Grounds for Sculpture – south of New York City. He is especially interested in exploring the relationship between artist and “audience”.

Hope

Blair Introspection

Pregnant Silence 

Like his colleagues Royden Mills and Peter Hide, Edmonton’s Ken Macklin also works in the “assembled sculpture” tradition and studied with Caro. His works are included in several international collections. Macklin strives to evoke timeless emotions and perspectives derived from his “lived experience.” He is inspired by the Alberta landscape, its expanses of forest, vibrant colours, and the unique character of each season. This combination of perspectives results in art that is personal, but has universal appeal. He employs colour and flowing forms juxtaposed with rigid structural elements to create works that are playful and accessible.

Hopping John

Clown Around

Ace of Wands

The smoothness and graceful curves of Clay Ellis’s sculpture can be traced to his early art practice in ceramics and clay. His work encompasses monolith sculpture to colourful mixed media works. He has exhibited and conducted symposiums throughout North America and beyond, and his works can be found in collections that include the Canada Council Art Bank, the National Gallery of Botswana and many private collections.

Wither & Tome