“Faith in the Fields: Picturesque Ukrainian Churches of Saskatchewan”Paintings, drawings and sketches by Fritz Stehwien, compiled by Barbara StehwienPublished by Landscape Art PublishingReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$19.95 ISBN 9781738021901 Fritz Stehwien was a German-born Saskatoon artist (1914-2008) whose life and work continue to be celebrated by many, including his family. The art-filled hardcover Faith in the Fields: Picturesque Ukrainian Churches of Saskatchewan is an archival project produced by Waltraude and Barbara Stehwien, and in its introduction we learn that the book “was inspired by two exhibits held at the Ukrainian Museum of Canada in Saskatoon: Faith in the Fields (1997) and Faith in the Fields II (1999)”. The beautifully-bound book features page after page of full-bleed, mostly pastel images of the singular churches and landscapes Stehwien encountered in his adopted home on the Canadian prairies. (The lifetime artist was forced to serve as a soldier in Eastern Europe during WW II.) This art book also commemorates the “resilience” of “European settlers encountering the harsh prairie climate”. This resilience came, in part, due to “their faith and strength,” and memorials to this history are found in the Ukrainian churches—“revered prairie icons”—still scattered across Saskatchewan. While some of these architectural delights are…

The Iconic Elevator: Vanishing Horizons of the Western Prairiesby Fritz StehwienPublished by Landscape Arts PublishingReview by Michelle Shaw$29.95 ISBN 9780991964925 There are few more iconic images on the prairies than the majestic grain elevators. In the latest release from the Fritz Stehwien Estate, 37 works of art showcasing these aptly named Prairie Giants are collected together in a beautiful hardcovered book. Barbara Stehwien, who compiled The Iconic Elevator, says that the giant wooden structures under enormous skies left a large impression on the Stehwien family when they arrived in Saskatchewan and Fritz was fascinated by what he saw. “These old elevators add a scale to the vast perspectives like no other structures do. [They appear] to simply dot the landscape in the distance, [but] become quite momentous when up close.” She says the book is a tribute to the incredible visuals of the wide open spaces of Saskatchewan. The Iconic Elevator features images from around the province, including Yorkton, Swift Current, Marchwell, Sintaluta, Fleming, Melfort and Hanley. One painting shows a view from Meewasin Park and another features the University of Saskatchewan Elevator in 1982. Some paintings are simply titled Prairie Summer, Harvest Time and Winter Road. I particularly loved…

Of Prairies Past: Vintage Canadian Prairie Motifsby Fritz StehwienPublished by Landscape Art PublishingReview by Michelle Shaw$29.95 ISBN 9780991964994 When German -Canadian artist, Fritz Stehwien, arrived in Saskatchewan in 1968 he was enchanted by what he saw and began painting and sketching whenever he could. Of Prairies Past is the latest collection of his works, and features a variety of prairie scenes, both rural and urban, captured in oils, pastels, pen and ink and charcoal drawings. This small hardcover book features 39 different prairie motifs from the iconic grain elevator to tiny country churches, the University of Saskatchewan and the Saskatoon skyline. The North Battleford and Melfort Post Offices are featured (both in the 1970s), along with Whitkow Church (1990s) and the Medical Arts Building (1970s) at the University of Saskatchewan. One of Stehwien’s gifts is capturing moments in time. I loved his sketch of a milk delivery truck in the 1970s, delivering milk while the neighbourhood children, all bundled up, slide down the snowbanks on sleds. I was also fascinated to see a drawing of a ski jump pictured at the University of Saskatchewan. The drawing also dates to the 1970s. Naturally I turned to Google and sure enough the…

Mark the Manitoba Mooseby Sharla GriffithsPublished by Sharla GriffithsReview by Amanda Zimmerman$17.00 ISBN 9781999560034 Sharla Griffiths, an author and illustrator residing outside of Regina, SK, once again dazzles readers with bold colours, soft landscapes, and lovable characters in her newest picture book, Mark the Manitoba Moose. Revisiting the same recognizable style as her previous books Six Saskatchewan Bunnies and Colour YQR, Griffiths brings an airy feel to this third story, weaving in simple, eye-catching details on every page to surprise and delight. There is a purity – a childlike innocence – in her pictures which easily transports older readers back to more imaginative days. All ages will enjoy this story! However, the winsome illustrations are only a portion of Mark the Manitoba’s Moose’s literary charm. This lighthearted adventure features a very determined moose named Mark in his search for his missing animal friends. As he traipses across one of our prairie provinces, he encounters a variety of beautiful landmarks that locals are sure to know. Nature lovers will be particularly pleased that most of Griffith’s chosen spaces are outside. Mark gathers help from those that live in or near these special places and even brings some of them along with…

The Power of a Paintbrush: The Story of an Escape from the Prison Camp Stalag XXA after World War IIby Chantal Stehwien and Barbara StehwienPublished by Landscape Art PublishingReview by Shelley A. Leedahl$29.95 ISBN 9-780991-964963 I was familiar with the moving story of German-born artist, pacifist, and prisoner-of-war survivor Fritz Stehwien via the book Fritz Stehwien: A Retrospective. That earlier, softcover title included black and white and colour images of the prolific artist’s work, including landscapes, portraits, and still-lifes. Now Stehwien’s family has collaborated again to release a hardcover that celebrates the man (1914-2008), his art, and his story. The Power of a Paintbrush: The Story of an Escape from the Prison Camp Stalag XXA after World War II, revisits how Stehwien “relied on his artistry to survive [a] devastating time of war,” and the 30-page book includes a generous selection of high-resolution images of his original art, including oils, watercolours, and both pencil and charcoal sketches. “Fritz was always an artist,” and when the Second World War began, he was an art student at the Hamburg Art Academy. “He was drafted and forced to serve in the German army,” his family writes, first in France, then he was sent…

Scenic Bridges: A Collection of Bridge Motifs by Fritz StehwienPublished by Landscape Art PublishingReview by Michelle Shaw$29.95 ISBN 9780991964987 Scenic Bridges, the latest release from the Fritz Stehwien Estate, is a delightful visual study of bridges around the world, in particular Saskatoon, and also reveals a gifted artist’s creative development and perspective through the years. Saskatoon is well-known as the City of Bridges (eight to date) and this beautiful hardcover book features a number of them. But it also goes beyond the city, featuring bridges near Borden and The Battlefords as well as bridges further afield including the Calgary Centre Street Bridge, and the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, Ontario. Bridges are obviously something that continually fascinated Stehwien and he was known to sketch and paint wherever he went. Many of the bridges in the book are from his travels around the world, including Taiwan, Austria, Germany, France and Holland and span the years from the early 1940s to the 1980s. One of the things that struck me about this book is that Stehwien has captured specific brief moments in time that would otherwise have been forgotten. A number of his artworks, for example, show bridges in Europe during World…

Absolute Prairie: Saskatchewan Landscapes in Watercolor and Pastelby Fritz Stehwien, Compiled by B. StehwienPublished by Landscape Art PublishingReview by Michelle Shaw$19.95 ISBN 9780991964956 Absolute Prairie presents a collection of iconic Saskatchewan images that are beautifully rendered by a man who was passionate about both his art and the prairie landscape he came to call home. Born and educated in Germany, where he was traditionally trained in fresco and mural painting, Fritz Stehwien immigrated to Canada and settled in Saskatoon in 1968 where he continued to express himself as a visual artist. In the foreword to this small, beautifully captivating collection of Stehwien’s work we are told that “for a man of few words and one who never held a camera in his hands his estate of thousands of works tells an amazing complete and fully illustrated life story.” This collection comprises 39 of his works and, while some scenes are instantly recognizable, there is a helpful list of the places he captured with his art at the back of the book. Subjects range from Pike Lake in summer, sunset on Wakaw Lake, the Saskatchewan River in Fall colors, a historic view to the University of Saskatchewan, moose grazing at the…

Indexby Roula PartheniouPublished by Dunlop Art GalleryReview by Juliana Rupchan$29.99 ISBN 978-1-988404-01-1 Index is an art catalogue collecting the works of Roula Partheniou, a Toronto artist working primarily in sculpture. Index was published in Saskatchewan by the Regina Public Library’s Dunlop Art Gallery, and Regina locals may also recall seeing Partheniou’s exhibit, “Chalk to Cheese”, which was on display at the Sherwood branch of the gallery in fall 2016. Even a casual observer could find this catalogue satisfying to flip through: Partheniou’s work deals mainly with simplified, handmade replicas of everyday objects, making the book a veritable I-Spy of recognizable items. The primary colours and smooth designs have an oddly satisfying and almost relaxing effect, but closer observation also draws one into a strange in-between world, real but not quite, with the unsettling air of an optical illusion. It’s these questions, about how we perceive objects we might initially dismiss as mundane, that are central to the collection. The book includes photos of eight different exhibitions: several, including “Chalk to Cheese” consist of an array of replica household objects, leaving the viewer to determine possible connections between them or logic behind their arrangement. Others, like “Twofold”, take a more abstract…

The Steeps of Time: Poems & Paintings by Victor Carl Friesen Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing Reviewed by Ben Charles $25.00 ISBN 9781988783222 The Steeps of Time: Poems & Paintings is the latest publication from legendary Saskatchewan poet Victor Carl Friesen and his fourth collection of poems and accompanying paintings, both of which produce warm, nostalgic, and detailed recollections of the beautiful nature found in Saskatchewan and of life on the farm. Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing, this riveting collection of fifty-five poems is separated into two portions that each illustrate different themes in the author’s life. The first section, titled “A Burgeoning”, is comprised mainly of descriptive, traditional poetry that, as mentioned, describes natural phenomenon and rural life in Saskatchewan. The latter section, titled “The World Illuminated”, is far more abstract and delves into the emotions, opinions, and outlooks on life of the author. In both segments Friesen showcases his uncanny descriptive abilities that immediately transport the reader to the bountiful natural beauty found in Saskatchewan. While reading such poems as “A Leaf in the Wind” or “Spring’s Regalia”, I was reminded of times being out in the fields while hiking or hunting, appreciating the beauty of…

An Assortment: Darkly Delicious Literary & Visual Oddments by Marie Elyse St. George Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing Review by Shelley A. Leedahl $19.95 ISBN 978-1-927756-83-6 The enticing title of Marie Elyse St. George’s latest book says it all. Delve into this tickle trunk of poems, stories (both fictions and truths), drawings, paintings, and cartoons, plus a tribute to now long-passed writer Anne Szumigalski, and you’ll indeed find something darkly delicious to make you smile, laugh, and think. Saskatoon’s St. George has earned an esteemed reputation as both a visual artist and a writer, and a career highlight’s been her 1995 poetry and art collaboration (with close friend Szumigalski) Voice, which resulted in both an exhibition at the Mendel Art Gallery and a book which garnered the Governor General’s Award for Poetry in 1995. She’s also collaborated with poet Patrick Lane, provided art for the covers of numerous literary journals and books, and published an award-winning memoir. While reading An Assortment: Darkly Delicious Literary & Visual Oddments, I procured an image of a young girl skipping through a field of wildflowers, plucking blossoms here and there for an atypical bouquet. This image was no doubt hastened by the book’s…