Artist, educator. Born in Shoreham, England in 1943, Ian Wallace began his artistic career in Vancouver in 1965. In 1968, he received his Master of Arts in Art History from the University of British Columbia. He also taught studio arts at the University of British Columbia (1968-1970). In 1972, Wallace accepted a teaching position at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, a placement he would hold until his retirement in 1998. As a professor, he has had an indelible role in shaping the contemporary art scene and is considered the father of what is known as the Vancouver School of photography. Through impressing upon his students the necessity of a knowledge of art history for art making, in the ambitious visiting artist program he coordinated, and his progressive courses that brought together printmaking, film, photography, and painting into one realm of images, Wallace shaped a generation of artists in a literate, sophisticated worldview, stemming from his own practice. Wallace is known for bringing together painting and photography to problematize the perceived differences between the two mediums and to create hybrid objects in dialogue with the problems of the modern world, both artistic and social. He is exhibited and collected both internationally and nationally. Wallace lives and works in Vancouver.
Discrete project sites documenting the work of specific artists and collectives in detail.
Essays and conversation providing a context for exploring the Project Sites and Archives.
Video interviews conducted between December 2008 and May 2009 reflecting on Vancouver’s art scene in the sixties.