Knowledge Made Concrete: 100 Years of Teaching and Collecting

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Greg Payce, “SSSSSSS,” 2000

ceramic (Art Gallery of Alberta Collection) (gift of the Artist) (Photography by Charles Cousins, courtesy of the Art Gallery of Alberta)

Shortly before becoming head of the institution that ultimately became Alberta University of the Arts (AUArts), artist J.W.G. Macdonald offered a subtle description of art as “knowledge made concrete.” This expression captures the essence of art education, where students and instructors collaborate to transform abstract ideas into tangible forms and experiences. Combining traditional techniques with experimental approaches and the exploration of unconventional materials, concepts are brought to life through shapes, textures, and colours. Macdonald’s insight also highlights the connection between art and public collections, like that of the Art Gallery of Alberta (AGA), which preserves works by numerous influential instructors, professors, and alumni of AUArts. 

As Alberta’s two oldest cultural institutions, AUArts and the AGA have enjoyed a century-long partnership. Their reciprocal relationship has played a key role in shaping Alberta's artistic landscape. The exhibition Knowledge Made Concrete draws from the AGA’s Permanent Collection, showcasing works by AUArts alumni and faculty. The exhibition also features new works by recent alumni, offering a reflection on the past while also looking to the future. Collectively, these works show us how AUArts artists see and comprehend society's complex problems and offer solutions through their diverse mediums and distinct expressions.    

This exhibition is just one in a series of AGA anniversary exhibitions that have featured hundreds of Alberta artists and is the first in a new series by AUArts, symbolizing a century of shared influence and cultural development. Through Knowledge Made Concrete, both institutions celebrate their collective legacy of fostering creativity and shaping Alberta’s vibrant art community. 

Artists: 

Robin Arseneault, Alana Bartol, eva birhanu, Isla Burns, Tamara Lee-Anne Cardinal, Joane Cardinal-Schubert, John Chalke, Chris Cran, Vera Gartley, Henry George Glyde, Gordon Ferguson, Douglas Haynes, Faye HeavyShield, Alex Janvier, Kablusiak, Illingworth Kerr, A. C. Leighton, J. W. G. Macdonald, Amy Malbeuf, Margaret May, Walter May, Ron Moppett, Marion Nicoll, Katie Ohe, Greg Payce, Walter J. Phillips, Tanya Rusnak, Simone Elizabeth Saunders, Mary Scott, Arlene Stamp, Adrian Stimson, Peter Von Tiesenhausen, Thea Yabut