William Kurelek

July 28, 2019 7:53 PM

"William Kurelek was an artist of extremes. As no Canadian artist before him or since, Kurelek attracted, through his at once sentimental and monstrous imagery, the attention of both popular audiences and seasoned critics."—Andrew Kear's William Kurelek: Life & Work is a wonderfully thorough exploration of an artist with many facets. Kurelek expressed his struggles with depression, schizophrenia, eye pain, and hospitalization in works like The Maze and I Spit on Life. He was devoted to Canadian subjects, often pastoral images of Ukrainian-Canadian culture, the prairies, and children (books like A Prairie Boy's Winter remain vivid to some of us).

His work was influenced by Bosch, Bruegel and the Northern Renaissance, surrealism and social realism (all Wikipedia).

The site's main sections are along the top:
Biography | Key Works | Significance & Critical Issues | Style & Technique | Sources & Resources | Where To See

posted by sylvanshine (10 comments total)

Annoyed that I've had Tom Thomson and Emily Carr's goddamn trees jammed down my throat for thirty years without knowing this also exists.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 11:54 PM on July 28, 2019 [3 favorites]

I had first seen The Maze as a young reader in a chapter describing art as a window into mental illness (and an avenue for therapy) in The Mind, one of the books in the Time/Life Science series. There the artist and the painting were not identified – although very slight biographical detail was given. Years later when I read about Kurelek I realized the painting was his.
posted by rochrobbb at 4:15 AM on July 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

Great post! Thanks for introducing me to Kurelek and his work: it's all really intrieging to me.
posted by carmicha at 5:49 AM on July 29, 2019

Kurelek's works have been climbing a lot in value recently too. This one of Toronto's Kensington Market recently sold for $472K. Note as well that the frame shown there is constructed and decorated by Kurelek. Don't miss the "Frames" section in the main link of the FPP. Too often the photos we see of his work crop out the frame (or the original frame has been replaced), when in fact they add a whole other dimension to his work. Another example.

The Maze documentary is available to buy or rent online. Kurelek also wrote an autobiography, which IMO is not particularly well written, but is extremely raw, frank, and honest about his struggles to try and reach mental health and spiritual peace.
posted by Kabanos at 5:50 AM on July 29, 2019 [2 favorites]

> I had first seen The Maze as a young reader in a chapter describing art as a window into mental illness (and an avenue for therapy) in The Mind, one of the books in the Time/Life Science series.

Yes! That was also where I first saw it! It was startling to see it years later on that Van Halen album. None of my classmates believed me when I told them where it came from.

IIRC Kurelek was anonymous in that publication (and, probably, the Life Magazine article it came from) because the painting was being discussed in the context of the activity of a mental patient.
posted by ardgedee at 6:05 AM on July 29, 2019

I used to live near Broadview and Danforth in Toronto, and was startled a few years ago on a visit to the AGO to discover that Kurelek had once painted almost the exact view that I could see out my apartment window every day.

From his painting, I learned that the northern part of Riverdale Park was once covered in lawn grass; it's now been allowed to grow wild.
posted by tallmiddleagedgeek at 7:43 AM on July 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'd never heard of this artist. This is great. A lot of his style has that mixture of painterly and cartoony which got really popular in the last decade or two. He seems to know exactly what tools to use in exactly what place; drastically different styles composited so well.

Thanks!
posted by es_de_bah at 8:57 AM on July 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

Also, it's clear that the Perry Bible Fellowship guy is obsessed. Oddly, this becomes clearer when you look at Kurelek's subject works, rather than the ones that more obviously invoke comics or sequentialism.
One of Nicholas Gurewitch's more 'default' styles seems to be modeled exactly on stuff like this.
posted by es_de_bah at 9:07 AM on July 29, 2019

This is part of Art Canada Institute's Canadian Online Art Book Project, which has dozens of monographs like this, each one available online or as a beautifully designed PDF. It's really a remarkable resource! A few others: Shuvinai Ashoona, Emily Carr, Greg Curnoe, Alex Colville, General Idea, Helen McNicoll, William Notman, Michael Snow, Tom Thomson, Joyce Wieland, etc.
posted by oulipian at 9:52 AM on July 29, 2019 [3 favorites]

I used to live near Broadview and Danforth in Toronto, and was startled a few years ago on a visit to the AGO to discover that Kurelek had once painted almost the exact view that I could see out my apartment window every day.

Oh yeah!

"Don Valley on a Grey Day."
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 2:43 PM on July 29, 2019