Carl Beam was a was an internationally acclaimed contemporary Canadian artist of Ojibwe descent, whose work will survive as a milestone in the development of the Aboriginal voice within the context of the presence of Canada on the international art scene. He was a big man; he had big ideas and a big heart.
Carl Beam
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CARL BEAM - 1943-2005
Carl Beam was born in M’Chigeeng (West Bay) on Manitoulin Island. Of Ojibway heritage, the artist has exerted a strong influence on a whole generation of Aboriginal artists and has been instrumental in the development of the art of Canada’s First Nations.
He obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Victoria and also did post-graduate work at the University of Alberta. His work, executed in diverse media such as drawing, watercolour, etching, non-silver photography, photo transfer, installation and ceramics, has been exhibited throughout North America as well as in Italy, Denmark, Germany and China. It is found in major Canadian and international collections including the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Vancouver Art Gallery and the Albright-Knox Gallery in Buffalo, N.Y.
In 2000, Carl Beam was inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of the Arts. Prior to his death in July 2005 he resided in M’Chigeeng.
Education
1975-76 Graduate Studies, University of Alberta
1974 B.F.A., University of Victoria, B.C.
1971 Kootenay School of Art, B.C.
Selected Collections
- National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
- Museum of Civilization, Ottawa, Ontario
- Canada Art Bank - Canada Council
- Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario
- Vancouver Art Gallery, British Columbia
- Albright Knox Gallery, Buffalo, NY
- McMichael Collection of Canadian Art, Kleinberg, Ontario
- Calgary Nickel Arts Museum, Alberta
Selected Solo Exhibitions
- 2002 The Whale of Our Being, Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa
- 2001 The Whale of Our Being, De Leon White Gallery, Toronto
- 2000 Group Show: Works from Novak Graphics, Shanghai, China
- 2000 Reconstructing Reason: the Koan of Carl Beam, Carleton University Art Gallery, Ottawa
- 1999 Epistemological Reconstruction Work, De Leon White Gallery, Toronto
- New Works, De Leon White Gallery, Toronto
- 1997 Notification, Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen's University, Kingston
- Transitions, Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris, France
- Environmental Canada Project, McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa
- Margins: Food/Shelter, De Leon White Gallery, Toronto
- 1996 Oh! Canada. Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
- 1995 Circolo Arcinboldo, La Spezia, Italy
- Four Italian Exhibitions of Columbus Boat, De Leon White Gallery, Toronto
- Neon Arts Contemporanea, Bologna, Italy
- Via Farini, Milan, Italy
- Leon V-Idea, Genoa, Italy
- Indian Time, Brandts Klaederfabrik, Odense, Denmark
- 1994 McMichael Canadian Collection, Kleinberg
- Land, Spirit and Power, Nickel Arts Museum, Calgary, Alberta
- Reading the Language of Culture, Hamilton Art Gallery, Hamilton
- Land Spirit and Power, Contemporary Arts Museum, Houston, Texas
- 1993 Indigena, Winnipeg Art Gallery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Earth, Spirit and Power - Within the Shadow of the Sun, The York Quay Gallery, Toronto
- Burying the Ruler, International Symposium - Native American Art Association Panel Member, Santa Fe, New Mexico
- Fragile Power: Explorations of Men, Newton Art Centre, Newtonville, Massachusetts
- The Columbus Suite, Gettysburg College Art Gallery, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
- Arnold Gotlieb Gallery, Toronto
- The Columbus Suite, The Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba, Brandon, Manitoba
- Land, Spirit and Power, MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina, Saskatchewan
- Adobe Project: Living in Mother Earth, London Regional Art Gallery and Historical Museum, London, Ontario
- Indian Territories, Renee Fotouhi Fine Art East, Long Island, NY
- 1992 La Parete Gallery, Toronto
- Indigena, Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
- Land, Spirit and Power - First Nations, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
- Ufundi Gallery, Ottawa
- Look Ma, No Mortgage, Arnold Gotlieb Gallery, Toronto
- Colours of Humanity, The Sky Dome, Toronto
- The Columbus Suite, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto
- The Columbus Suite, Two Rivers Gallery, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- The Columbus Boat, The Weil Gallery, Corpus Christie State University, Texas
- The Columbus Boat, The Power Plant, Toronto
- 1989 Beyond History, Vancouver Art Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia
- Indian Art'89, Woodland Cultural Centre, Brantford, Ontario
- In the Shadow of the Sun, Canadian Museum of Civilization, Hull, Quebec
- In the Shadow of the Sun, Dortmund, Germany
The Lord’s Prayer
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 30 x 22 Inches
Code No.: MA16
Price: $6,800.00 Framed
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Final Notice
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 30 x 22 Inches
Code No.: MA15
Price: $6,800.00 Framed
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Beam told stories with pictures. His works can be read as morality plays juxtaposing long held perceptions with challenging alternatives. His well-known images, la pieta, an embryo, Abraham Lincoln, Sitting Bull, a crow, Einstein among others, were cultural markers overlaid with references to time and space. With a linear pattern or formal grid, he tried to visually create the fourth dimension in his work, a spiritual space inhabited by a quiet intellect. That he was an artist of Indigenous and white heritage added to the scope of the complex subjects he chose.
The Peace Officer
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB01
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Initial Difficulty
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB03
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
El Corazon
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB04
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
La Corona
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB05
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Revelation # 2
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB06
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Revelation # 4
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB07
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Revelation – Their Own Expense
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB08
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Ionization
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB10
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Sigma
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB11
Price: $1,500.00 Framed
Take A Chance
Artist: Carl Beam
Medium: Mixed Media on Paper
Size: 16 x 12 Inches
Code No.: CB12
Price: $1,500.00 Framed