Albert Franck
Canadian artist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Albert Jacques Franck (2 April 1899 – 28 February 1973) was a Canadian artist. He is known for his realistic paintings[1] of Toronto winter scenes,[2] dilapidated neighbourhoods[3][4] and back lanes.[5][6][7] His detailed paintings provide a historical record of conditions in some of Toronto's once less affluent neighbourhoods.[8][9] "He was unknowingly the first Toronto house nationalist," said Harold Town.[10]
April 2, 1899
Albert Franck | |
|---|---|
| Born | Albert Jacques Franck April 2, 1899 Middelburg, Zeeland, Netherlands |
| Died | February 28, 1973 (aged 73) |
| Education | self-trained |
| Spouse | Florence Vale |
Early life
Career
Franck opened a studio in his small home on Gerrard Street in Toronto. He began by hanging some of his paintings in a local restaurant,[5] and in this way his work became locally known. In the 1950s he and his wife, artist Florence Vale,[14] developed the studio into a gathering place for the arts community. They hosted and supported the work of many young local artists,[5][15][16] particularly those participating in the emerging Toronto abstract art scene, including Joyce Wieland[17] and Kazuo Nakamura.[18] Franck and Vale later moved to a larger home, which also served as their studio and gallery, on Hazelton Street[19] as part of a general migration of the art community to the Yorkville area during the 1960s.[20]
Franck's first exhibition was presented at York University in 1963.[21] In 1973, he held an exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ontario. Franck also participated in a number of group exhibitions.
Franck's paintings are in the collections of the Art Gallery of Ontario,[22] the Museum London,[23] the National Exhibition Centre in St. Catharines,[24] the New Brunswick Museum,[25] and McMaster University Art Gallery.[26]
He was an Associate member of the Royal Canadian Academy (1961-1970), and a member of the Ontario Society of Artists (1958), the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour, and the Canadian Society of Graphic Art.[27]
Fellow artist Harold Town, a close friend,[28] wrote two books celebrating Franck's art.[29][30]
Franck also taught art in a local high school[31] and played the cello.[32] He and his wife sent small pieces of their art as greeting cards to friends and relatives, and some of these have survived.[33]
Franck died in Toronto on February 28, 1973.[6] A street in the St. Lawrence Neighbourhood of Toronto is named for him.[34]