Sandra Meigs facts for kids

Sandra Meigs RCA FRSC (born 1953) is a Canadian artist. She is known for her unique and colourful paintings. Sandra Meigs lives and works in British Columbia, Canada. Her artworks have been shown in galleries all over Canada and in other countries too. She is also a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

About Sandra Meigs

Sandra Meigs was born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1953. She studied art at the Rhode Island School of Design and the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. She also earned a Master's degree in Philosophy from Dalhousie University in 1980.

Sandra started her art career as a painter in Toronto. In 1993, she moved to Victoria, British Columbia. There, she became a Professor of Visual Arts at the University of Victoria. She taught painting and art theory to many students for 24 years before retiring in 2017.

Sandra Meigs' Art Style

Sandra Meigs is famous for her bright and mysterious paintings. Her art often tells interesting stories and includes funny parts. Her paintings can make you think deeply, as they have many layers of meaning.

Her work often explores feelings and big ideas, like light, darkness, and storytelling. Sandra's paintings often have a surprising twist. This encourages people to look for different meanings in her art.

She uses special techniques to create her paintings. She layers the canvas with a material called gesso. This creates smooth, raised lines and shapes that are carefully planned. Her art might look simple at first, but it's very detailed!

Sandra also likes to try new things in her art. She uses different materials and mixes them in unusual ways. For example, her 2010 series called The Fold Heads is a mix of painting and sculpture.

Teaching Art to Students

Sandra Meigs has a lot of experience teaching art. While studying for her Master's degree, she was a teaching assistant at Dalhousie University. Later, she taught art techniques at the Banff School of Fine Arts. She also worked as an art instructor at York University.

From 1990 to 1993, she taught painting at the University of Toronto. After that, she joined the Visual Arts department at the University of Victoria. She taught there for 24 years, focusing on hands-on learning. This means students learned by doing art, not just by listening to lectures.

Famous Artworks

Sandra Meigs has created many interesting art pieces and series. Here are some of her notable works:

• Room of 1000 Paintings (1986): This artwork was shown at the Toronto Pearson International Airport. It was a room filled with paintings of faces showing different feelings.
• Love Muscle (1989): When this series was shown, each painting's title was just one word from a long sentence.
• Baby (1994): This series has 12 paintings made with oil on linen. They look like children's nursery rhymes but tell a story about a woman and her baby.
• Canadian (1995): This series includes 15 abstract landscape paintings. They were inspired by children's books and fairy tales.
• Reckless Days (1997): These 8 artworks were displayed in a row. They used oil paint, lights, and shiny silver material. Each painting was named after a time of day, but they weren't in order.
• Resin Heads (1988): These 25 paintings look like human faces. They were made from fiberglass and other materials. A critic said these artworks showed "emotional minimalism" and had "unreadable expressions."
• The Newborn (2001): These 12 paintings were shown at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. Sandra got the idea for this work in a garden and used a fairy tale style.
• Fold Heads (2009): These eight paintings used bright colours and special lights. They also had fabric hanging from them and neon signs with fun phrases.
• The Basement Panoramas (2013): This work includes four large paintings that show personal moments from Sandra's life.
• Room for Mystics (2017): Sandra created this work with Christopher Butterfield. It has 30 paintings and sound art. Some paintings were on easels in the middle of the room, while others hung on walls.
• TERRE VERTE (2019): This series of paintings is about the grasslands in Southern Alberta. Sandra painted these landscapes outdoors for many years. Each painting shows a meeting with the amazing life in this area.

Sandra Meigs has visited the McIntyre Ranch in Southern Alberta many times. She has created art inspired by the plants, wildlife, and birds there. She describes the landscape as alive, using bright neon colours and a "vortex" symbol to talk about life and death.

Sandra also wrote a book of poems called Heavens to Betsy in 1983. Sometimes her art shows include her poetry, but she also publishes her poems on their own.

Awards and Recognition

Sandra Meigs has won several important awards for her art:

• In 2015, she received the Gershon Iskowitz Prize. This award came with $50,000 and an extra $10,000 to help her publish more work. Winning this prize also meant she would have a solo art show at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Her show, Room for Mystics, was shown in 2017.
• Also in 2015, she won the Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts. This is a very high honour in Canada. Winning this award meant her work was featured at the National Gallery of Canada.
• Sandra Meigs has also been named a fellow at the Royal Society of Canada. This means she is recognized for her important contributions to Canadian arts and sciences. A film was even made to celebrate her achievements!