Twilight over Lake

About Twilight over Lake

This contemporary abstract acrylic landscape is by Otto Rogers.

International collectors and critics alike consider Otto Rogers to be one of Canada’s finest abstract artists. A masterful painter and sculptor, Rogers developed his own signature style that echoed the bold cubist-constructivist form of work he admired--Pablo Picasso, Julio González and David Smith.
Rogers liked painting in fine layers and often diluted his paints to achieve a flat milky colour with visible texture. This is one of his earlier works that illustrates that effect. The warm, moody palette—a subtle mix of earthy and rosy hues suggests darkening lake waters as it appears when the sun is going down before night falls. A narrow soft gray border punctuated by strokes of deep blue, soft yellow, red, and lilac frames the expansive colour field of the canvas.

“Art is not simply a decorative thing. The sense of peace that art conveys reflects attributes of the soul, and that significant form elevates the human soul.”
Otto Rogers

“What is incredibly unique about Rogers’ practice is that his entire oeuvre holds together cohesively: what Rogers’ art reminds one of most of all is an artwork by Rogers. This is why he is a ‘Big Attack’ painter: while he reflected the external world, he painted from the inside, and he never compromised his authentic expression.” Dr. Jessica Veevers, Art Historian

Otto Rogers (1935-2019) was born in Saskatchewan and acquired his MA in Fine Arts from the University of Wisconsin. He later taught art at the University of Saskatchewan for 30 years. Rogers' significant contribution to mentoring the next generation of artists cannot be overstated. His work is included in more than 30 public collections across Canada, including the Art Gallery of Ontario, the McMichael Canadian Collection, and the National Gallery of Canada. Roger’s work is also in the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona and the National Gallery of Iceland, as well as numerous private and corporate collections. Rogers also helped sustain the Emma Lake Workshops, which provided a meeting place for many of North America's most respected visual artists and critics, including Clement Greenberg, Barnett Newman, Jules Olitski, Kenneth Noland, Jack Shadbolt, and Helen Frankenthaler. In 2007, a book of his work, Otto Donald Rogers, including a foreword by famed British sculptor Sir Anthony Caro, was published.