Biography

TAKAO TANABE has been an important figure in Canadian painting and printmaking for over six decades. Born in Prince Rupert, British Columbia in 1926, Takao Tanabe studied in Canada, Europe, the United States and Japan. Following a decade as head of the art program and artist-in-residence at the Banff Centre, he returned to British Columbia in 1980 where he lives and works.

 

Takao Tanabe's work is in numerous international public, corporate and private collections, including Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Art Gallery of Ontario, Canada Council Art Bank, Glenbow Museum, Calgary; McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton; National Gallery of Canada, Tate Museum, U.K.; Vancouver Art Gallery, Borden, Ladner, Gervais; Four Seasons Hotels, Jarislowsky Fraser Ltd., Scotiabank and UBS Canada Inc.

 

Tanabe is the recipient of several honorary degrees and awards, including Order of British Columbia (1993), Order of Canada (Member, 1999), the Governor General's Award in Visual and Media Arts (2003), Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts (2013).

 

In 2005, the retrospective Takao Tanabe was organized by Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and Vancouver Art Gallery and toured nationally. In 2011, the traveling exhibition "Chronicles of Form and Place: Works on Paper" by Takao Tanabe was organized by the Burnaby Art Gallery and McMaster Museum of Art. In 2016, the exhibition "Takao Tanabe - Sumie: Ink Brush Paintings" was featured at the Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre, Burnaby, British Columbia.

 

Takao Tanabe has been represented by Mira Godard Gallery for over 55 years.

Works
  • TAKAO TANABE, The Land 24/74, 1974
    TAKAO TANABE
    The Land 24/74, 1974
    acrylic on canvas
    40 3/8 x 70 3/8 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Yellow Diagonal in the Sky, 1964-65
    TAKAO TANABE
    Yellow Diagonal in the Sky, 1964-65
    oil on canvas
    27 x 19 1/2 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Tanu, 1970
    TAKAO TANABE
    Tanu, 1970
    acrylic on canvas
    33 5/8 x 34 in.
  • untitled (diamond) by takao tanabe
    TAKAO TANABE
    Untitled (Diamond), 1968
    acrylic on canvas
    61 x 40 1/4 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Target, 2006
    TAKAO TANABE
    Target, 2006
    acrylic on paper
    23 x 31 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Marsh Magenta, 1964
    TAKAO TANABE
    Marsh Magenta, 1964
    acrylic on paper
    30 3/4 x 23 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Persimmons, Tokyo, 1959
    TAKAO TANABE
    Persimmons, Tokyo, 1959
    sumi ink and watercolour on paper
    12 x 19 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, A Corner of a Mustard Sky 1/59, 1959
    TAKAO TANABE
    A Corner of a Mustard Sky 1/59, 1959
    casein on paper
    22 1/2 x 13 1/4 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Emperor Series, Study M, 1964
    TAKAO TANABE
    Emperor Series, Study M, 1964
    acrylic on paper
    31 1/2 x 20 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Kiku, 1960
    TAKAO TANABE
    Kiku, 1960
    sumi ink on paper
    29 x 12 in.
  • foothills autumn, near bowden by takao tanabe
  • TAKAO TANABE, Ruffled Lake, Osoyoos, 1959
  • TAKAO TANABE, Caribou Rangeland, Onward Ranch, 1957
    TAKAO TANABE
    Caribou Rangeland, Onward Ranch, 1957
    pastel on paper
    8 1/2 x 23 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Twilight at Osoyoos, 1957
    TAKAO TANABE
    Twilight at Osoyoos, 1957
    pastel on paper
    12 1/4 x 18 3/4 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, A Plan for a Monumental Traffic Jam, 1965
    TAKAO TANABE
    A Plan for a Monumental Traffic Jam, 1965
    collage on board
    11 x 17 1/2 in.
  • TAKAO TANABE, Inside Passage, Stephen Island , 2007
    TAKAO TANABE
    Inside Passage, Stephen Island , 2007
    original signed woodblock print
    15 x 29 5/8 in.
    ed. 50
  • marble Is, Q.C.I. by takao tanabe
  • TAKAO TANABE, Low Tide/Rathtrevor, 1990
    TAKAO TANABE
    Low Tide/Rathtrevor, 1990
    original signed woodblock print
    15 x 24 3/4 in.
    ed. 50
  • TAKAO TANABE, Gogit Passage, Q.C.Is., 1988
  • TAKAO TANABE, Barkley Sound, 2007
    TAKAO TANABE
    Barkley Sound, 2007
    original signed woodblock print
    24 x 13 in.
    ed. 50
  • TAKAO TANABE, Skincuttle Bay, 1986
    TAKAO TANABE
    Skincuttle Bay, 1986
    original signed lithograph
    17 x 32 3/4 in.
    ed. 50
  • TAKAO TANABE, Dark Prairie II, 1984
    TAKAO TANABE
    Dark Prairie II, 1984
    original signed etching
    15 3/4 x 23 3/4 in.
    ed. 30
  • TAKAO TANABE, Skincuttle Channel , 1994
    TAKAO TANABE
    Skincuttle Channel , 1994
    original signed photogravure
    8 x 11 3/4 in.
    ed. 50
Exhibitions
Publications