Image: Photograph of David Blackwood by Stephen Amini via www.davidblackwood.com.
OCAD U printmaker famed for visualizing Newfoundland has passed away
World-renowned artist, teacher and Newfoundlander David Blackwood passed away on Saturday, July 2, 2022 at the age of 80. Blackwood studied at OCAD University (then Ontario College of Art) and after graduating in 1963, went on to become a leading figure visualizing life on the coast and sea in Newfoundland.
Born in 1941 in a small coastal community called Wesleyville, in Newfoundland and Labrador, Blackwood was raised among master mariners who inspired his work throughout his career. He lived much of his life in Port Hope, Ontario while maintaining a studio on the east coast.
A talented artist from a young age, Blackwood was awarded a Government of Newfoundland Centennial scholarship to train at the Ontario College of Art.
He is recognized for his blue-black etchings and prints, which portray scenes from outport life, shipwrecks icebergs, whales and men at sea, all depicted with haunting shadows and contrasting bright light. He also created paintings, drawings and woodcuts throughout his illustrious career.
At 23 his work was exhibited at the National Gallery in Canada’s capital. Emma Butler Gallery, which opened in 1987 featuring Blackwood’s work, exhibited his creative output for much of his career. The Newfoundland-based gallery currently has Blackwood’s works on view, specifically watercolour paintings from 2020 to 2022 and etchings from 1993 to 2021.
Blackwood's work has been exhibited internationally, with over 90 solo shows, and two major retrospective exhibitions. His work is featured in almost every major public gallery and collection across Canada, from the The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, and even in the Royal Collection of Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle. In 2000, the Art Gallery of Ontario created the Blackwood Research Centre based around a major collection of his works.
His most recognizable body of work is a series of prints made in the 1960s and 1970s, titled The Lost Party, which details the 1914 Newfoundland sealing disaster with harrowing scenes of sealers in boats. With over 50 etchings in the series, it remains one of the largest thematically linked series of prints in Canadian history, according to the CBC.
He was the subject of the 1976 National Film Board documentary Blackwood, in which the artist himself guides viewers through a step-by-step explanation of the etching process. Scenes of his hometown, examples of his own work and vivid tales of an old mariner recall the tragic seal hunts and a way of life that has now vanished. The short film was nominated for an Academy Award.
Blackwood has been honoured with several awards including the Order of Canada and the Order of Ontario.