Whale Frolic 122/125
Ted Harrison
16 colour serigraph
30 x 22.5 in.
Value: $560.00
Rental per month: $12.00
Ted Harrison is one of Canada's most popular and beloved artists whose love of the land and people of the Yukon has brought him national acclaim. His distinctive painting 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 with his twin sister Algar 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. As a youngster, he spent many idle hours drawing and his fondest memory was illustrating a book of MG motor cars at the age of 12. His talents were also recognized by grammar school teachers who encouraged him to further pursue his talents at art college.
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 the Second World War. Following military service, 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 in England, Malaysia, New Zealand and finally came 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 and his family settled in Carcross, and in 1970 moved to Whitehorse where he taught secondary school art and adult classes until 1979. After that time, he began to work as an artist full time. In 1993, seeking a more moderate climate, he and his wife Nicki moved to Victoria, British Columbia where he currently lives and works.