Harold Klunder (born 1943) is a Canadian painter.

Career

Born in

Deventer Deventer (; Sallands: ) is a city and municipality in the Salland historical region of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands. In 2020, Deventer had a population of 100,913. The city is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, bu ...

The Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, Klunder immigrated with his family to Canada in 1952. He studied art at the

Central Technical School Central Technical School (CTS or Central Tech) is a Canadian composite high school in Toronto, Ontario. The school is run by the Toronto District School Board (TDSB); before 1998, it was run by the Toronto Board of Education (TBE). Central Tech ...

, Toronto. In 1994, he began to teach at

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

and in 1997-1998, he taught at

University of Lethbridge , mottoeng = ''Let there be light'' , type = Public , established = , academic_affiliations = Universities Canada , endowment = $73 million (2019) , chancellor = Charles Weasel ...

, Alberta.

Work

Klunder is principally known for his abstract paintings which are based on a non-traditional notion of "the self-portrait". They often feature an abundant use of paint, applied in layers, and take years to complete. From 1971 to 1979, he used images and patterns often taken from found objects and geometric shapes. He began using oils in 1980 instead of acrylic, thus increasing the sense of materiality of the paint. In the early 1980s, he began developing a figural reference through drawing. By the mid-1980s, Klunder created "portraits" in paint, using his abstract language. He called such work "psychic realism" and his use of an

expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...

element was in touch with international painting. In about 1997, his work became more open and brighter, but still suggested figural elements.

Selected exhibitions, collections and memberships

His work has been widely exhibited, both in Canada and abroad. In 1996, the Tom Thomson Memorial Gallery in Owen Sound organized an exhibition, as did

Museum London Museum London is an art and history museum located in London, Ontario, Canada. It is located near the forks of the Thames River. It started its operations in 1940 with London Public Library and amalgamated with London Regional Art Gallery and Lon ...

in 1999 curated by Ted Fraser titled ''Harold Klunder: In the Forest of Symbols''. In 2020, his work was included in ''Painting Nature with a Mirror'', a group show from the collection of the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. His work is also included in public collections such as the

National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...

, the

Art Gallery of Ontario The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO; french: Musée des beaux-arts de l'Ontario) is an art museum in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The museum is located in the Grange Park neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, on Dundas Street West between McCaul and Beve ...

, and the

Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

. He was made a member of the

Royal Canadian Academy of Arts The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) is a Canadian arts-related organization that was founded in 1880. History 1880 to 1890 The title of Royal Canadian Academy of Arts was received from Queen Victoria on 16 July 1880. The Governor General ...

Personal life

In 1983, he moved to

Flesherton, Ontario Flesherton (population 584) is a community in the Municipality of Grey Highlands, in Grey County, Ontario, Canada, located at the junction of Highway 10 and Grey County Road 4 (formerly Highway 4). Although the area initially showed a high rate ...

, northwest of Toronto. In 1980, he moved to Montreal where he lives now with his partner Catherine Carmichael and best friend/artist Shane West. His daughter Saskia Carmichael Klunder, actress/dancer, lives in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, and Elizabeth Carmichael Klunder lives in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. Klunder also has a son, Willem Klunder, living in Europe (from a previous marriage).

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Klunder, Harold 1943 births Painters from Toronto People from Deventer Canadian male painters Living people Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts 20th-century Canadian painters 21st-century Canadian painters Canadian abstract painters Dutch emigrants to Canada Canadian abstract artists 20th-century Canadian male artists 21st-century Canadian male artists