Georgia Suite: Symmetry

About Georgia Suite: Symmetry

A ‘symphony’ of colour neatly framed in pale blue bordered quadrants plays against a wash of yellow in this vivid abstract by Milly Ristvedt. A master colourist, in the 1980’s Ristvedt focused on minimal shape and the “character and skeleton” of lyrical gestures--brushstrokes in saturated colour. The palette is fresh and modern—turquoise, pink, orange, royal blue, purple, burgundy, white, yellow and black.

“For myself as an artist, the freedom to explore my own psyche, physicality, and the life around me that informs my work through the elements of painting, particularly the elusive, magical, and fugitive properties of colour, is a gift that I endeavour to pass on.” Milly Ristvedt

Born in British Columbia, Ristvedt studied at the Vancouver School of Art (now the Emily Carr University) and had her first solo exhibit at the Carmen Lamanna Gallery in Toronto. In the late 1960s, Ristvedt shared a studio with famed Canadian painter Jack Bush, met art critic Clement Greenberg and was inspired by American painters Jules Olitiski and Frank Stella. Her work has been included in many publications, She was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 2004 and honoured with the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. She has won seven Canada Council awards and two Ontario Arts Council awards and had over 50 solo exhibitions and been part of countless group shows. Ristvedt's work can be found in major public collections throughout North America including the National Gallery of Canada.

Milly Ristvedt is represented exclusively by the Oeno Gallery.