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(LEFT) Wilf Perreault, Turn Right, 1981. From the University of Lethbridge Art Collection; Gift of Jim Coutts, 2010. (BELOW) Wilf
Perreault, Disappearing Curb, 1984. From the University of Lethbridge Art Collection; Gift of Rick and Ellen Campbell, 1999.
Wilf Perreault was born in 1947 in Albertville, Sask. While growing up in Saskatoon, he took art lessons from his neighbour, acclaimed prairie artist Ernest Lindner. After graduating from the University of Saskatchewan in 1970, he taught high school art while developing his painting practice. Since his first solo exhibition at the MacKenzie Art Gallery in 1978, Perreault’s work has been exhibited and collected across Canada and the United States. In 2003, Perreault was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal. Perreault is well known for his hyper-realistic depictions of back lanes and roadways, which focus on light, shadow and the minute details of mundane urban living. These painstakingly painted environments challenge traditional notions of beauty found in most picturesque landscape paintings, while also capturing a strong sense of place that makes them readily identifiable with Canada’s Prairie region.