Black Sheep Gallery - Folk, Outsider and Self-taught Art

Hi everyone - it's cold out there! Hopefully you'll be as charmed as we are by the works we have to show you this month, and it will help lighten the burden of these February blues.

Folk art from Eastern Canada is often created as an expression of the artist's appreciation of their world, sometimes just a memory, not to be forgotten but enjoyed: often only by the artist's family and friends, and sometimes just themselves. We really enjoy letting you have a look at some of the work from our part of the world and help you see why Maritimers cherish their heritage so deeply.

Ransford Naugler worked on fishing boats when he was a young man, and memories from that part of his life often show up in his work. We have one of his boats available for purchase. This one was created to commemorate the 150th birthday of Canada. It is magnificent and I do not think that is too big a word for this piece. Three full sails fly over a boat with (again that word) a magnificent eagle figurehead with a mermaid dressed in Nova Scotian tartan as lookout. The entire ship with birds and fish is mounted on a very Canadian beaver with two small kits on each side. Magnificent!

The Bay of Fundy is a top whale watching destinations in North America, so the humpback whale was a common sight for Digby folk artist Stephen Outhouse. Stephen has made this whale from slabs of wood glued together and finished to a very smooth finish. Stephen was one of few artists that used woodworking machinery to make his carvings. We visited his shop in Marshalltown several times, and he was always a jovial host. He lived just down the road from Maud Lewis' house and was an early member of the group responsible for the preservation of Maud's house.

Watching birds is part of our daily ritual in Nova Scotia. I have identified 42 species around our property with my handy Merlin app. I'm missing most of them these days, so decided to feature three carved birds this month. The seagull by an unidentified artist has a warm age patina. It is resting on a choppy sea. The peacock by North Shore artist Stanley Rector is tiny but powerful. Other folk artists have used peacocks in their work, but Stanley's little rendition is totally unique. Walter Myette's hen is also different with its pink belly and delicate black lines used to emulate the feathers. Walter's earlier pieces are more detailed both in the carving and the finish painting. He spent his life in Chezzetcook, which is not far from us, and we had the privilege of meeting him shortly after he turned 99.

Chris Huntington met Louise Chaulk English in 1991 when he was touring Newfoundland (another beautiful and independent Canadian province). Louise. who was confined to a wheelchair. had been painting for years and selling her work through the Houston North gallery in Lunenburg where Chris had purchased one of her paintings. Chris declared he had not come across works as compelling since he discovered Joe Norris with his paintings nailed to his fish shed. The bowl of pansies titled "Flowers For You" was one of his purchases from Louise that day.

Bubby Mooers lived in the small town of Milton in Western Nova Scotia. We enjoyed many visits with him over the years. He loved to fish and hunt and shared some Moose meat steaks with us after a successful hunting season. He knew how to survive in the face of adversity, and he relished the fight. Country music was a staple of his world, and we are pleased to present his carving of a country singer.

We are also featuring a little black pig by an unidentified artist. It was probably made by someone from the farmlands of the Annapolis Valley, as it cones from a nice collection in that area.

And finally, something not from Canada but from the United Kingdom's Ian Pyper, a self-taught artist described by Kate Howlett in Raw Vision magazine, as "... full of conflicts; a frank, unaffected man who has little truck with the pretensions of the art world, he is at the same time intensely passionate about his drawing. He is a spiritual pragmatist; a modernist with sentimental tendencies; a down to earth eccentric." Ian's painting of a Mohican bird, an early work, resembles a quilt with blocks of colour, intricate stitching patterns and a wool fringe - a masterful and eccentric use of geometric design and colour to effectively create the illusion of the rich texture of a quilt.

Be safe everyone.

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