{{short description|Canadian artist (born 1926)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}} {{Infobox artist | name = Takao Tanabe | image = Egg and moon (7458303856).jpg | image_size = | alt = | caption = ''Egg and Moon'' by Takao Tanabe{{br}}Art Gallery of Nova Scotia | birth_name = Takao Izumi | birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1926|09|16}} | birth_place = Seal Cove, British Columbia, Canada | death_date = | death_place = | nationality = | spouse = Anona Thorne | field = | training = Winnipeg School of Art, Winnipeg, Manitoba (1946–1949), studying with Lionel LeMoine FitzGerald, and Joseph Plaskett; Brooklyn Museum Art School, New York City, New York with Hans Hofmann (1951) and Reuben Tam (1951–1952); Central School of Arts and Crafts, London, UK (1953–1954); studied Sumi-e and calligraphy at Tokyo University in Japan | movement = | works = | patrons = | awards = Order of Canada, Order of British Columbia, Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts; Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts, | elected = Member, Royal Canadian Academy of Arts | known_for = Painter, graphic artist }}
'''Takao Tanabe''', {{Post-nominals|country=CAN|CM|OBC|RCA|size=100%}} (born 16 September 1926) is a Canadian artist who painted abstractly for decades, but over time, his paintings became nature-based.
==Biography== Born Takao Izumi in Seal Cove, today part of Prince Rupert, British Columbia,<ref name="brennan " >{{cite web |last1=Brennan |first1=Brian |title=Takao Tanabe |url=https://www.gallerieswest.ca/magazine/stories/takao-tanabe/ |website=www.gallerieswest.ca |publisher=Galleries West Magazine |access-date=2021-04-10}}</ref> the son of a commercial fisherman, where he was the fifth of seven children. Tanabe and his family were interned with other Japanese-Canadians in the British Columbia interior during World War II.<ref name="NGC " >{{cite web |title=Takao Tanabe |url=https://www.gallery.ca/collection/artist/takao-tanabe |website=www.gallery.ca |publisher=National Gallery of Canada |access-date=2021-04-10}}</ref> They were relocated first to a camp at Hasting Park in Vancouver and Lemon Creek<ref>{{Cite web |title=HistoricPlaces.ca - HistoricPlaces.ca |url=https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=22979 |access-date=2023-04-20 |website=www.historicplaces.ca}}</ref> in the Kootenays in the summer of 1942, where they were expected to build their own internment camp.<ref name=":0 " >{{Cite book |last=Thom |first=Ian |url=https://www.aci-iac.ca/art-books/takao-tanabe/biography/ |title=Takao Tanabe: Life & Work |publisher=Art Canada Institute |year=2023 |isbn=978-1-4871-0325-5 |location=Toronto |language=English}}</ref>
Tanabe attended the Winnipeg School of Art, Winnipeg, Manitoba (1946–1949), initially enrolling in a sign painting class as it would provide him with employable skills before becoming fascinated with art's potential outside of a commercial context.<ref name=":0 " /> Tanabe studied in this period with Joseph Plaskett, who introduced the young artist to the work of Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse and became a friend of Tanabe's for life.<ref name=":0 " /> He then studied at the Brooklyn Museum Art School, New York City, New York with Hans Hofmann (1951) and Reuben Tam (1951–1952).<ref name="zemans " >{{Cite book |last1=Zemans |first1=Joyce |title="Abstract and Non-Objective Art in English Canada". The Visual Arts in Canada: the Twentieth Century |date=2010 |publisher=Oxford University Press |others=Foss, Brian., Paikowsky, Sandra., Whitelaw, Anne (eds.) |isbn=978-0-19-542125-5 |location=Don Mills, Ont. |page=179 |oclc=432401392}}</ref> Upon returning to Vancouver in 1952, Tanabe took up mural painting and completed his first commissioned work, a mural for the University of British Columbia Art Gallery entitled ''The World We Live In'' in 1953.<ref name=":0 " /> Tanabe received an Emily Carr Scholarship that same year; the news was delivered to him in a phone call from Lawren Harris.<ref name=":0 " /> He went to the Central School of Arts and Crafts, London, UK (1953–1954) and during that time travelled widely in Europe. From 1959 to 1960, he studied Sumi-e and calligraphy at Tokyo University in Japan on a Canada Council Scholarship.<ref name="zemans " /><ref name="NGC " />
His works are in public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Glenbow Museum, the Vancouver Art Gallery, the Canada Council Art Bank, the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and the Art Gallery of Ontario.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Takao Tanabe |date=2005 |publisher=Douglas & McIntyre |others=Takao Tanabe, Ian M. Thom, Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Vancouver Art Gallery |isbn=1-55365-141-3 |location=Vancouver |oclc=60318949}}</ref>
==Career== His art has gone through many different phases.<ref>{{cite web |title=Takao Tanabe Speaks About His Art |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xveDec8zE8Q |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211222/xveDec8zE8Q |archive-date=2021-12-22 |url-status=live|website=www.youtube.com |publisher=You Tube, Jan 31, 2007 |access-date=2021-04-10}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In his "inscapes" (he called his paintings after a term used by Gerald Manley Hopkins) of the late 1950s, Tanabe explored his memories of lit interiors, painting them abstractly and expressing them with calligraphic signs.<ref name="NGC " /> His works of this period often blur the line between figurative and abstract painting.<ref name=":0 " />
From 1961 to 1968, Tanabe taught at the Vancouver Art School. Throughout the 1960s, he became well-established in the Vancouver art world and continued to exhibit his work across Canada, painting more large-scale murals in Ottawa, Winnipeg, Regina, and Edmonton.<ref name=":0 " /> In 1968, he worked in Philadelphia, moving in 1969 to New York City where he lived until 1972. In New York, he painted hard-edge geometric abstracts.<ref name="NGC " /> From 1973, he was head of the art program and artist-in-residence at the Banff Centre for the Arts. By then, he consciously considered landscapes as a subject, while progressively eliminating references to the specific.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Murray |first1=Joan| title=Canadian Art in the Twentieth Century|date=1999|publisher=Dundurn|isbn=|location=Toronto|oclc=260193722}}</ref> In 1980, he returned to British Columbia where he lives and works on Vancouver Island. He is considered today a painter who primarily evokes the landscape of British Columbia in minimalist but detailed paintings.<ref>{{cite web |title=Order of Canada, Takao Tanabe |url=https://archive.gg.ca/honours/search-recherche/honours-desc.asp?lang=e&TypeID=orc&id=4868 |website=archive.gg.ca/ |publisher=Governor General of Canada |access-date=2021-04-10}}</ref>
In 2005, a major retrospective of his work curated by Ian Thom<ref name="brennan " /> was organized and circulated by the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and Vancouver Art Gallery.<ref>{{cite web |title=Takao Tanabe |url=https://mcmichael.com/event/takao-tanabe/ |website=mcmichael.com |publisher=McMichael Canadian Art Gallery |access-date=2021-04-10}}</ref>
In 2014, Tanabe said: <blockquote>...I try to avoid brush marks so that it looks as though the paint has just floated on...<ref>Becky Rynor, "An Interview with Takao Tanabe". National Gallery of Canada Magazine, 21 July 2014.</ref></blockquote>
== Major solo exhibitions == * ''Takao Tanabe: Inside Passage'' (2026), retrospective co-curated by the Audain Art Museum in Whistler, BC; National Gallery of Canada and Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, British Columbia<ref>{{cite web |title=article |url=https://www.heffel.com/Auction/LotDetails_E?Request=iZTDNdl2DfJc8jRi4pFzNF4FyYcqe80krsL77dDV7HCFgRnZlE65Sejm0ycgxb2jLFf//a9sxqr8XJiJM8G0baN6YDXUyaFgJi71yLWmS578vrnAqxtpFfH0OtfS3O0kX+NuTSh3iHME6Muk4cyAv5buoHnvDavzKrb9qQWmHWEzUSWdpvB0PuC3qjgOxQTsQWdf9kceRRw1QT9Lghyii15nV6LlIlX0uHND6qJQH2s= |website=www.heffel.com |publisher=Heffel Auction House |access-date=27 April 2026}}</ref> * ''Early Works'' (2025), Equinox Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia<ref>{{cite web |title=Takao Tanabe Early Works |url=https://www.equinoxgallery.com/exhibitions/takao-tanabeearly-works/ |website=equinoxgallery.com |access-date=20 March 2026}}</ref> * ''Printmaker'' (2023), Kelowna Art Gallery, Kelowna, British Columbia<ref>{{Cite web |title=Takao Tanabe: Printmaker – Kelowna Art Gallery |url=https://kelownaartgallery.com/takao-tanabe-printmaker/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |language=en-US}}</ref> * ''A Modern Landscape'' (2021), West Vancouver Art Museum, West Vancouver, British Columbia <ref>{{Cite web |title=A Modern Landscape: Takao Tanabe {{!}} West Vancouver Art Museum |url=https://westvancouverartmuseum.ca/exhibitions/modern-landscape-takao-tanabe |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=westvancouverartmuseum.ca}}</ref> * ''Sumie: Ink Brush Paintings'' (2016), Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre, Burnaby, British Columbia<ref>{{Cite web |title=Takao Tanabe: Sumie |url=https://centre.nikkeiplace.org/exhibits/takao-tanabe-sumie/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre |language=en-CA}}</ref> * ''Chronicles of Form and Place: Works on Paper'' (2011), Burnaby Art Gallery (touring exhibition, to McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton; Nanaimo Art Gallery; The Reach, Abbotsford)<ref>{{Cite web |last=Art |first=McMaster Museum of |title=Takao Tanabe: Chronicles of Form and Place |url=https://museum.mcmaster.ca/exhibition/takao-tanabe-chronicles-of-form-and-place/ |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=McMaster Museum of Art |language=en-US}}</ref> * ''Mountains in Winter'' (2009), Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff (touring exhibition, to Penticton Art Gallery; West Vancouver Art Museum)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Takao Tanabe {{!}} Sources & Resources |url=https://www.aci-iac.ca/art-books/takao-tanabe/sources-and-resources |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien |language=en}}</ref> * ''Takao Tanabe'' (2005), Vancouver Art Gallery (touring exhibition, to Art Gallery of Greater Victoria; Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax; McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Takao Tanabe {{!}} Sources & Resources |url=https://www.aci-iac.ca/art-books/takao-tanabe/sources-and-resources |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=Art Canada Institute - Institut de l’art canadien |language=en}}</ref>
==Awards and honours== * Member of the Order of Canada<ref>{{OCC|4868}}</ref> * Order of British Columbia * Two honorary doctorates * Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts * Member, Royal Canadian Academy of Arts<ref name=RCA1880 >{{cite web|title=Members since 1880|url=http://www.rca-arc.ca/en/about_members/since1880.asp|publisher=Royal Canadian Academy of Arts|accessdate=11 September 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110526215339/http://www.rca-arc.ca/en/about_members/since1880.asp|archivedate=26 May 2011}}</ref> * Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts (2013)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/takao-tanabe-gathie-falk-win-30k-audain-prize-for-art-1.1384375|title=Takao Tanabe, Gathie Falk win $30K Audain Prize for art|website=CBC News|language=en|accessdate=21 March 2017}}</ref> == Record sale prices == At the Heffel auction of Post-War & Contemporary Art, May 23, 2024, Lot 004, ''Nootka 1/91: in Hanna Channel'', acrylic on canvas, 27 x 59 in, 68.6 x 149.9 cm, Estimate: $60,000 - $80,000 CAD, Sold for: $451,250 (including Buyer's Premium).<ref>{{cite web |title=Artwork |url=https://www.heffel.com/auction/LotDetails_E?Request=iZTDNdl2DfJc8jRi4pFzNF4FyYcqe80krsL77dDV7HCow9OTQA64f+VG3CAWm7cEchYbhdamiG4QqZBq3+9/h8q48/nXmMxaWVvTXmhMvm/FEVZBJgDDj2kURPONFzbSQZgbFb6nJboiElpDBfsb9vxSo9ycov2BCSvAwGFtnW86LPGtpUyNbqxI2cVp1XATJTERUjUQ9wm0qhkXu3+dZCJy/oY2aamOp9kNmyvq+aQ= |website=www.heffel.com |publisher=Heffel Auction House, Post-War & Contemporary Art spring 2024 |access-date=3 June 2024}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/exhibitions_takaotanabe.cfm Takao Tanabe exhibition] at the Vancouver Art Gallery, 21 January 2006 – 17 April 2006 *[http://www.godardgallery.com/tanabe.htm Takao Tanabe at the Mira Godard Gallery] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060325003526/http://www.godardgallery.com/tanabe.htm |date=25 March 2006 }} *[http://collections.ic.gc.ca/bank_art/tanab.htm Takao Tanabe information at gc.ca] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060501105030/http://collections.ic.gc.ca/bank_art/tanab.htm |date=1 May 2006 }} *[http://www.formandplace.ca Bilingual website for the touring exhibition "Takao Tanabe: Chronicles of Form and Place", organized and circulated by the Burnaby Art Gallery and the McMaster Museum of Art] *[http://www.lib.sfu.ca/system/files/28909/TanabeTFonds.pdf Records of Takao Tanabe and Periwinkle Press are held by Simon Fraser University's Special Collections and Rare Books] *[https://www.gallery.ca/library/ngc038.html Takao Tanabe fonds] at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario
== Further reading == * {{cite book |last1=Thom |first1=Ian M. |title=Takao Tanabe |date=2005 |publisher=Vancouver Art Gallery and Douglas and McIntyre |location=Vancouver|url=https://library.gallery.ca/search~S1?/aThom%2C+ian/athom+ian/1%2C1%2C74%2CB/frameset&FF=athom+ian+m+ian+macewan+++++1952&69%2C%2C74|isbn=1553651413 |access-date=13 May 2024}} * "Chronicles of Form and Place : Works on Paper by Takao Tanabe" (2012), Darren J. Marten, Ihor Holibizky, Denise Leclerc (Burnaby Art Gallery) {{ISBN|9780980996296}} * "Takao Tanabe: Life & Work" (2023), Ian M. Thom, (Art Canada Institute) {{ISBN|978-1-4871-0325-5}} * {{cite book |last1=Thom |first1=Ian M. |title=Takao Tanabe: Printmaker |date=2023 |publisher=Kelowna Art Gallery |location=Kelowna |url=https://www.gallerieswest.ca/magazine/books/art-books-2023 |access-date=16 December 2023}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanabe, Takao}} Category:1926 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian painters Category:Canadian printmakers Category:Members of the Order of British Columbia Category:Members of the Order of Canada Category:People from Prince Rupert, British Columbia Category:Japanese-Canadian internees Category:Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts Category:Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts winners Category:Canadian expatriates in the United States Category:Canadian expatriates in the United Kingdom Category:Canadian expatriates in Japan