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Ted Harrison's distinctive painting style which illustrates his love of the land and the people of Yukon has brought him
national acclaim. His style is colourful
and sophisticated yet retains an innocent charm. He is also
an internationally recognized author and illustrator of children's
books and has spent much of his career teaching art to children
of all ages.
Edward
Hardy Harrison was born August 28th, 1926 in the village of Wingate
in County Durham, England. His father was a coal miner and his
mother a "miner's wife". Ted attributes his early interest
in art and design to encouragement from his parents, particularly
his mother who had an interest in fashion design and photography.
In
1943, he enrolled in the West Hartlepool College of Art and began
to study art and design in earnest, but like other young men at
the time, his education was interrupted by National Service.
Maggie
(1993-2005) |
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After the war, he returned to art school and in 1950,
received a Diploma of Design. The following year he received a
teaching certificate from the University of Durham and began a
twenty-eight year career in Education.
He taught school in England, Malaysia, New Zealand and finally
went to the Yukon in 1967 where he received a job to teach in
"the land of the mighty Moose - where weaklings need not
apply". He
settled in Carcross and in 1970 moved to Whitehorse where he
taught art to secondary school students and adults until 1979.
After that time, he began to work as an artist full time. In
1993, he moved to Victoria,
British Columbia where he currently lives and works.
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His work can be found in numerous private and public collections
throughout Canada and in England, Australia, New Zealand, the
United States, Germany and Japan. In 1987 he received the Order
of Canada for his contribution to Canadian culture and was awarded
an Honorary Doctorate from Athabasca University in 1991, an
Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts from the University of Victoria
in 1998 and a Distinguished Alumni Award from The University
of Alberta in 2002. In 2005, Ted was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Alberta, and as well was elected to the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. Other honours include being the first Canadian
to have book illustrations selected for the International Children's'
Book Exhibition in Bologna, Italy. In 2006 he received an honorary doctorate from Malaspina University College in Nanaimo, as well as a Citizenship Award from the City of Victoria.
Bradford
(2006)
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