Colville - Tapa dura

"At the window, the sound of waves crashing on the beach has a rhythm, and as you close your eyes, that sound begins to vibrate, it blurs into a heavy pulsing sound of wheels pounding over the gaps in the steel rails. It passes. You hear the wind rush through the tall dry marsh grass, feel it pull at your clothes, drawing you inland, after the dark horse, and the girl keeps watching. The sound peaks, it becomes a cry. It is the last thing you will ever and always hear." -- Andrew Hunter

Colville is a book like no other.

Designed to accompany an exhibition at the Art Gallery Ontario, Colville honours the iconic Canadian artist's legacy and explores the continuing impact of his work on film, literature, and music.

Known for painting decidedly personal subject matter, Colville's painstakingly precise images depict an elusive tension, capturing moments perpetually on the edge of change and the unknown. Featuring more than 100 reproductions, Colville will feature works assembled from museums and private collections nationwide. Spanning the entirety of Colville's career, the works will include many works that have never been have never been reproduced before this moment as well as his most iconic paintings, including Horse and Train, 1953; To Prince Edward Island, 1965; Woman in Bathtub, 1973; and Target Pistol and Man, 1980.

Colville was a painter, printmaker, and war veteran who drew his inspiration from the world around him, transforming the seemingly mundane figures and events of everyday life into archetypes of the modern condition. He was made a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1982 and won a Governor General's Visual and Media Arts Award in 2003.

"At the window, the sound of waves crashing on the beach has a rhythm, and that rhythm has momentum, and as you close your eyes, that sound begins to vibrate; it blurs into a heavy pulsing sound of wheels pounding over the gaps in the steel rails. It passes. You hear the wind rush through the tall dry marsh grass, feel it pull at your clothes, drawing you inland, after the dark horse, and the girl keeps watching. Hear that lonesome whistle blow. The sound preaks, it becomes a cry, and it hurts. It is the last thing you will ever and always hear." -- Andrew Hunter

This magnificent volume honours the legacy of iconic Canadian artist Alex Colville and explores the reverberations between his work and that of contemporary filmmakers, writers, and artists.

Colville is known for painting decidedly personal subject matter. His precise images depict an elusive tension that suggests a sense of danger and captures moments perpetually on the edge of the unknown. Featuring more than 100 reproductions, Colville includes works from museums and private collections across Canada. The volume spans the entirety of Alex Colville's career and contains many images that have never before been reproduced or shown publicly, as well as his most iconic paintings, including Horse and Train (1954), To Prince Edward Island (1965), Woman in Bathtub (1973), and Target Pistol and Man (1980).

Alex Colville was a painter, printmaker, and war artist who drew his inspiration from the world around him, transforming everyday figures and events into archetypes of the modern condition. He was made a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1982 and won a Governor General's Visual and Media Arts Award in 2003.