About Artist:
Dale Kirschenman began painting his first landscapes in the nineteen eighties. He attended The Alberta College of Art and Design and completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting "With Distinction" in 1998. Kirschenman's paintings illustrate his connection to the vastness of the Canadian landscape. Growing up in the sand hill country near Medicine Hat, Alberta, he developed an appreciation of nature early in life and pursued his passion for landscape imagery, first through photography and more recently, through his paintings. He is an avid hiker and cross-country skier. His early impressionist style has gradually evolved over the years. Kirschenman's most recent works employ the language of abstraction to describe the elemental effects of land, weather and light. Kirschenman has lived in Calgary since 1979. He maintains a studio in the city but also enjoys painting outdoors in the surrounding landscape whenever possible. Kirschenman's paintings are present in numerous private and corporate collections in Canada.

Shows & Exhibitions:
   1998 Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary, Alberta- Graduation Show
   1999 Marion Nicoll Gallery, ACAD, Calgary, Alberta - Solo Show
   1999 The Auburn, Calgary, Alberta - Solo Show
   2000 The Centre Gallery, Calgary, Alberta - Group Show
   2000 Harrison Galleries, Vancouver and Calgary - Ongoing Group Shows
   2001 The Whistler Art Galleries, Whistler, BC, - Group Shows
   2001 Harrison Galleries, Calgary, Alberta - "Horizons" Solo Show
   2002 Tutt Street Gallery, Kelowna, BC - Group Shows
   2003 Free Range, Harrison Galleries, Calgary
   2005 Mythic Spaces, Prairie Art Gallery, Grande Prairie, AB
   2007 Spirituality in Contemporary Art Practices, Calgary, AB
   2007 Untitled, Summit Gallery, Banff, AB
   2007 New Works, Harrison Galleries, Vancouver, BC

Collections:
   Alberta Foundation for the Arts
   Clark Valuation Services Ltd., Calgary, Alberta
   Energrowth Holdings Ltd., Calgary, Alberta
   S.A. Productions, Calgary, Alberta
   Charlton Capital Corp., Calgary, Alberta
   Numerous private collections

Memberships:
   1994 The Leighton Foundation, Calgary, Alberta - ongoing membership
   1996 The New Gallery, Calgary, Alberta - ongoing membership
   1999 The Art Gallery of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta - ongoing membership
   1999 The Centre Gallery, Calgary, Alberta - ongoing membership
   2004 The New York Art Students League, NY, NY
   2007 Calgary Contemporary Arts Society, Calgary, AB

Statement:
Humankind has always been intrigued by the effects of light on earth, atmosphere and clouds. In many cultures, atmospheric events have been regarded as signs of divine presence or portents of the future. Often atmospheric phenomena have been recreated in religious art imagery to suggest the presence of the divine. In the nineteenth century, artists like J.M.W. Turner and Caspar David Freidrich painted beautiful landscapes that dealt with the idea of the sublime in nature. They raised questions about humanity's place in the natural world. This questioning has been carried into the post modern era by recent painters like Anselm Keifer and Gerhardt Richter. My work is meant to stimulate a sense of memory, imagination and mystery in the viewer but without resorting the specificity of traditional landscape. The paintings are explorations into the materiality of the paint itself. The flicker and shimmer of translucent layers of paint on canvas recreate the play of light in the atmosphere. The mystery of distant objects and the seductive pull of the horizon beckon the viewer. . While the paintings present enticing imagery, hopefully, they also lead the viewer to think about the state of nature in our time and about our place in the natural world.

History:
1994 ACAD Alumni and Friends Association Scholarship, Merit of Entrance Portfolio 1995 Illingworth Kerr Scholarship for Academic Achievement 1996 Simon Chang and Phyllis Levine Foundation Scholarship Academic Achievement by a Painting Major