Daily Spotlight: Tish Holland

Tish Holland studied one year at Memorial University of Newfoundland before transferring to Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in Halifax. In 1978, Holland decided to pursue her interest in printmaking at York University, Toronto, Ontario and later at St. Michael's Printshop in St. John's, Newfoundland. However, she returned to NSCAD and completed a bachelor degree of fine arts in 1982.

Upon graduation, Holland spent a year travelling through Western Canada, the United States and Mexico. During her travels, Holland realized that she preferred other media to printmaking and began to explore painting. Holland's early paintings were characterized by unusual colours and occasional flashes of humour.

Since returning to Newfoundland, Holland has participated in several exhibitions including Elements, Thresholds and Fluctuations. Her focus is mostly on the landscape, and her work displays strong environmental concerns. Paintings like Bark at the Blast, a critique of NATO's low level flying tests in Labrador, or Last Tree, criticizing deforestation, have clear political intent.

In 1998, Holland was granted a solo exhibition titled Sea Dreams - Ancestral Shore at the House of Commons Reading Room in Ottawa in honour of World Fisheries Day. In her artist statement for this show, Holland reflects that her artwork has been "motivated by [her] deep interest in helping maintain a flourishing marine ecosystem along with the livelihood and health of the people of our coastal communities".

Holland's work is represented in the Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador's Permanent Collection, and the collections of the National Gallery of Canada, The Canada Council Art Bank, and Breakwater Press.

For more information regarding Tish Holland, please visit http://www.tishholland.com.