Untitled Landscape with White Square

About Untitled Landscape with White Square

The landscape, as interpreted by the uniquely talented eye of abstract artist Otto Rogers. In his characteristic modernist style, this appears to be a view focused on the horizon where earth and sky meet. The colours are subtle and rich…dark brown and green play off a sunset-like soft palette of oranges. The viewer’s eye is drawn to a single white square appearing in one corner. Rogers was recognized by the NY art critic, Clement Greenberg, as a ‘big attack’ painter early in his career and stated that his artwork showed a ‘fullness of inspiration.’ A devout follower of the Baha’i faith, Rogers did not view art as simply a ‘decorative thing.’

“One of the purposes of nature is to inspire the human heart. So, we are all inspired by nature, and that is part of the artistic process as well. “ Otto Rogers

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. 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 provide a meeting place for many of North America's most respected visual artists and critics, including Clement Greenberg, Barnett Newman, Jules Olitiski, Kenneth Noland, Jack Shadbolt, and Helen Frankenthaler. In 2007, a book of his work, Otto Donald Rogers, including a foreword by British sculptor Sir Anthony Caro, was published.