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Harold Klunder RCA (born 1943) is a Canadian painter.

Harold Klunder
Born	1943 Deventer, The Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch-born Canadian
Education	Central Technical School, Toronto
Known for	Painter
Partner	Catherine Carmichael
Elected	Royal Canadian Academy of Arts

Career

Born in Deventer, The Netherlands, Klunder immigrated with his family to Canada in 1952.[1] He studied art at the Central Technical School, Toronto.[2]

Klunder is principally known for his abstract paintings which are based on a non-traditional notion of "the self-portrait". They often feature an abundant use of paint, applied in layers, and take years to complete.[3] From 1971 to 1979, he used images and patterns often taken from found objects and geometric shapes.[4] He began using oils in 1980 instead of acrylic, thus increasing the sense of materiality of the paint.[5] In the early 1980s, he began developing a figural reference through drawing. By the mid-1980s, Klunder created "portraits" in paint, using his abstract language. He called such work "psychic realism"[4] and his use of an expressionist element was in touch with international painting. In about 1997, his work became more open and brighter, but still suggested figural elements.[5]

His work has been widely exhibited, both in Canada and abroad. In 1996, the Tom Thomson Memorial Gallery in Owen Sound organized an exhibition, as did Museum London in 1999.[5] In 2020, his work was included in Painting Nature with a Mirror, a group show from the collection of the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal.[6] His work is also included in public collections such as the National Gallery of Canada,[7] the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador.[1] He was made a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.[8]

In 1994, he began to teach at Memorial University of Newfoundland and in 1997-1998, he taught at University of Lethbridge, Alberta.[5]

Personal life

In 1983, he moved to Flesherton, Ontario, northwest of Toronto. In 1980, he moved to Montreal where he lives now with his partner Catherine Carmichael and best friend/artist Shane West. His daughter Saskia Carmichael Klunder, actress/dancer, lives in Montreal, Quebec, and Elizabeth Carmichael Klunder lives in Toronto, Ontario. Klunder also has a son, Willem Klunder, living in Europe (from a previous marriage).

References

Bibliography

• Murray, Joan (1999). Canadian Art in the Twentieth Century. Toronto: Dundurn. OCLC 260193722. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
• Nasgaard, Roald (2008). Abstract Painting in Canada. Douglas & McIntyre. pp. 265–267. ISBN 9781553653943. Retrieved 11 August 2020.

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