Allan Dunfield
Allan Dunfield was born in 1950 on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. In his paintings, he is inspired by the landscape and atmosphere of the West Coast, the central subject of his work. Feeding his passion for wide-open spaces, he paints jewels of light, treasures accessible to those who know how to "feel" the earth, sea and trees.
Allan Dunfield - Spirit of the West Coast
Date and place of birth
Allan Dunfield was born in Vancouver in 1950. In his adolescence, the family moved to New York City, where he graduated from high school with a major in Art. In 1969, he entered New York’s prestigious School for Visual Arts, where he studied for two years. This was when painting came into his life.
Background and career
While Allan initially worked as a professional chef, his artistic career took root in his twenties and has developed throughout his life, nurtured by the richness and beauty of Canada’s West Coast. In 2000, encouraged by his success with collectors and galleries, he quit his job to devote himself fully to his art and settled on Vancouver Island, which proved to be an endless source of inspiration.
An active member of the Federation of Canadian Artists since the turn of the century, Allan achieved signature status in 2012 and was named a Senior Member in 2014. He now paints every day in his Qualicum Beach studio on Vancouver Island in British Columbia.
His work and art
Allan Dunfield’s work is largely inspired by the geography of the West Coast. In all seasons, he explores his corner of Canada seeking the perfect instant, that magical moment that he can capture on canvas for posterity.
Feeding his passion for wide-open spaces, he paints treasures accessible to those who know how to “feel” the earth, sea and trees. His landscapes are filled with light that beckons the viewer to step in for a walk. Fleeting, it filters through the mists, bursts onto a sunlit beach or gets lost in the contours of a glacier.
In her book Klee Wyck (1941), painter Emily Carr talks about the spirit of the West Coast. Her descriptions convey her admiration for the energy she perceives: “ Above the beach, it was all luxuriant growth; the earth was so full of vitality that every seed which blew across her surface germinated and burst ". In this place where, in the words of poet and author Earle Birney, " dawn comes grey as a gull’s wing ", Dunfield lets himself be guided by the atmospheres, sounds and exhalations of this fragile beauty.
Allan Dunfield’s style is notable for its purity, and his work, a sensitive tribute to the perfection of nature, leaves the viewer with a strong impression of freedom and serenity.
Allan Dunfield is represented by the Au P'tit Bonheur Art Gallery since May 2016, exclusively for Eastern Canada.
