Early Fall: Burning Bush and Smoketree

About Early Fall: Burning Bush and Smoketree

This abstract contemporary painting inspired by nature was created by a Canadian artist.

The artwork of Noreen Taylor is often inspired by nature. Her chosen genre, abstraction allows her the freedom to express organic colors, patterns, and textures in imaginative ways. This piece, a tangled melange of fine brushstrokes in a rich combination of light and dark greens, yellow, red, and white references a rose garden viewed as night approaches. The perspective of this work was influenced by a memorable short story Taylor recalled—‘Theory of the White Spaces.’

“I have thought of this story so often over the years as I recognized an artistic kinship. Instead of concentrating on the object and depicting what it looks like, it is better to concentrate on the “white spaces” between the objects. What is that relationship between the positive and negative space? How does it change or is it immutable? And how does one capture the tension between this concept of object and non-object?” Noreen Taylor

Noreen Taylor was born in 1947 and raised in Toronto. She acquired both her B.Ed. and an M.A. in Art History at the University of Toronto.
Taylor is a highly respected businesswoman, visual arts teacher, and philanthropist who has helped shape art policy in the Toronto area. She has been a board member of several key arts organizations including the Art Gallery of Ontario and the Gardiner Museum.
Taylor chaired the McMichael Canadian Collection of Canadian Art and was the founding Artistic Director for the Claude Watson School for the Arts. Since the 1970’s she has exhibited in numerous solo, and group shows in Canada and the U.S. She has also contributed illustrations to several publications.