Brent R. Laycock: Understanding Acrylics

About: Brent R. Laycock RCA

Canadian Artist, Brent Laycock, has devoted a lifelong career to understanding and interpreting the Canadian landscape. His paintings in watercolour and acrylic find a resonance with many people because the work communicates the feeling and power of the landscape in a way that goes beyond representation. The most satisfying reward is knowing that people perceive the emotional communication in his work. One person commented "When I look at your paintings, I hear music."

Laycock was raised on a prairie farm near Lethbridge, and it was here that he learned to love the expanse of the prairie sky with the Rockies on the western horizon. After receiving an MFA in painting at Brigham Young University in Utah, he returned to Calgary where his artistic career has unfolded.

"Southern Alberta is a terrific environment for the landscape painter because of the contrasting variety of landscape that lies in each direction: mountains to the west, prairies to the east, parkland to the north. I always have some powerful emotional response to the landscape and try to communicate some of that same feeling to the viewer."

The grandeur of the western Canadian landscape has inspired him to work in large scale canvases, and many of these grace boardrooms of prominent corporations, public and private collections across Canada. Ironically, perhaps the most important thing that brought Laycock's work to the public eye were the two small paintings commissioned by Canada Post for their national parks postage stamp series. Since that time, Laycock's work has been exhibited and collected across Canada, the USA, Japan, Europe and Mexico.

His artistic career has also included painting floral subjects and producing graphic design. He has also been invited to present many workshops and lectures to a variety of art groups.

Upon graduation from university, Brent was accepted as a member of the Society of Canadian Artists. Soon after, he was inducted into the Alberta Society of Artists, the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour and finally awarded membership in the Canadian Royal Academy of Arts.