Draft Pick
Kenneth Lochhead (1926–2006) was a pioneering figure in Canadian modernism and a central force in the development of postwar abstraction in Canada. As a founding member of the Regina Five, Lochhead helped shape a new visual language in Canadian art.
Lochhead studied art at Queen’s University, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the Barnes Foundation. In 1955, he initiated the Emma Lake Artists’ Workshop, where he worked alongside Abstract Expressionist painters and influential critic Clement Greenberg.
The inspiration and knowledge he gained from these workshops catalyzed his evolution into Colour Field painting in the early ‘60s. These non-referential works reflect the New York aesthetic imparted by workshop leaders, including Barnett Newman and Kenneth Noland.
In 1964, Clement Greenberg selected Lochhead’s work for the landmark exhibition Post-Painterly Abstraction, alongside artists such as Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, Ellsworth Kelly, Frank Stella, and Kenneth Noland. This pivotal exhibition defined a new direction in modern art, emphasizing clarity, colour, and formal precision.
Lochhead’s paintings are celebrated for their bold chromatic relationships, refined geometry, and spatial clarity. Through carefully balanced compositions of saturated colour and linear form, his work achieves a sense of visual harmony and intellectual rigor. Each piece reflects a deep engagement with colour as both structure and subject, inviting contemplation through simplicity and precision.
Held in major museum collections across Canada and internationally, Kenneth Lochhead’s work represents a cornerstone of 20th-century abstraction.
