Saskatchewan’s agriculture is not only an economic endeavour but also the subject of artistic works. Saskatchewan has given birth to many artists who live on farms and are inspired creatively by the rural lifestyle and the Prairie landscape.
Jean Adaline (Hewitt) Shaver from Bengough was one of these early Saskatchewan artists. Her works are now on display at the Jean Shaver Art Gallery that was founded in her memory by her son Archie Shaver, a rancher from Bengough. This gallery is located on the site of the Deep South Pioneer Museum in Ogema.
Jean Shaver’s works depict the ranching way of life and pioneer living in that era. Shaver was a prolific artist making dozens of paintings and sculptures on western themes. They often show dangerous and dramatic scenes of a roaring bear or a cougar ready spring. Horses were a common image. Her works reflect the bold majesty and danger of the Prairie wilderness in the late 1800s. They also depict the desolation of the pioneer homesteading sod shacks on the barren southern Prairie.
Archie Shaver noted that many of the themes and images in her paintings come from his mother’s personal experiences. He added that his father and siblings supported his mother’s creativity, with family members tending to the outside work as she painted indoors, often in the winter months. Shaver wanted to find a more permanent place for his mother’s large collection of works and organized the gallery. Only a few works are displayed at one time and then the paintings are rotated. Shaver said that his mother would be happy to see her works displayed there. He also donated one of her sculptures to the Shurniak Art Gallery in Assiniboia last year.
The prairie grain elevator remains an iconic element of Saskatchewan art. The Canada 150 exhibit currently showing at the Shurniak Art Gallery in Assiniboia has several examples of the grain elevator in art. In some works, it represents the last vestige of a past era and an historical relic. While for other artists, it evokes childhood emotions rather than historical remembrance. The art gallery also featured B.C. artist Susan Schaefer this past year. One of her works was a water colour depicting a grain elevator. The soothing pastel colouring spoke to the audience’s emotions. Here, the elevator was used to recollect past happiness.
Artist Debbie McCrea from Mankota recently completed an exhibit of her works at the Kay Cristo Room at the Assiniboia and District Public Library. McCrea and her husband live on a ranch in the Mankota area and she takes her artistic inspiration from the people and the world around her. Her portraits depict many of people that she knows in the Mankota area.
Perhaps one of the best-known artists from Saskatchewan is award-winning sculptor Joe Fafard. He is most famous for his life-sized bronze sculptures of cows. Fafard was born in Sainte-Marthe, Saskatchewan, and has been heavily influenced by his home province’s surroundings in creating his art.
