William (Bill) Laing, RCA, is an influential Canadian artist who reflects on longing, absence, and the influences of memory. Laing’s meticulous prints and photographs deal with textures and pattern; working with photos, etching, silkscreen and assemblage, he often combines and layers visual elements in translucent or iridescent glazes. Laing’s contemplative work draws from early childhood onwards, exploring the vastness of the land and our isolation within it.

Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Laing immigrated to Canada in 1960; he studied at the Vancouver School of Art and Brighton Polytechnic in England, receiving his Master’s Degree from the Royal College of Art in London in 1974. Laing taught at ACAD for a short time, but was then hired by Harry Kiyooka at the University of Calgary in 1977, alongside John Hall, John Will, Noboru Sawai and John Chalke, where he taught for the next 39 years. His influence is seen in successful students Ken Webb, Marjan Eggermont, Laurel Johannesson, Jason Frizzell, Marigold Santos and Brad Harms among others. Laing won the university’s Student Union Teaching Excellence Award in 2006, 2011, 2012 and 2013; he also won the “Hall of Fame Award” in 2013.

Laing has exhibited in over 500 group shows and 50 solo shows across Canada and around the world. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, an elected Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Painters and Printmakers (London, England), and received the Order of The University of Calgary in 2006. Laing’s work has been collected extensively by such organizations as the National Gallery of Canada; Museum of Art in Strasbourg, France; Saidye Bronfman Centre, Montreal; National Gallery of Australia; J. Paul Getty Museum; Los Angeles County Museum; the Kyoto Museum of Art in Japan; Guangdong Museum of Art in Shanghai, China; and the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England.

Bill Laing “Opening”
26″x 34″    Silkscreen
Live Auction Lot #18
Fair Market Value   $1150

 

Bill Laing "Opening"26"x 34" Silkscreen
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Bill Laing “Opening”26″x 34” Silkscreen

 

Bill Laing

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