Sentinel #2, n.d.
Rick Bond
Artist: Rick Bond
Title: Sentinel #2, n.d.
Media: acrylic on canvas
Size: 36” x 12”
Provenance:
Private Collector, Toronto, ON
Woodlands Gallery, Winnipeg, MB
CAN $2,500.00
Description: This vertical landscape by Western Canadian painter Rick Bond showcases his signature graphic approach to nature, capturing the stylized silhouette of a single, gnarled tree set against a layered, abstract backdrop. Bond uses confident, angular brushwork and strong dark outlines to frame intense bursts of autumn foliage, where vivid oranges, burnt reds, and ochres contrast sharply against cool, muted lavender and grey tones. The result is a dynamic balance between structure and color, infusing a classic Canadian wilderness motif with modern vitality and rhythm.
Collector’s Note: Rick Bond offers collectors an opportunity to acquire a distinctive voice in contemporary Canadian landscape painting. His work has the immediate accessibility of recognizable Canadian scenery, while his bold colour, geometric structure and expressive linework give each painting a distinctly contemporary character.
His established gallery history, AFCA Signature Status, corporate commissions and more than four decades of professional practice provide important context for collectors considering his work. Bond's paintings are particularly appealing to collectors looking for Canadian art that bridges landscape and abstraction—work that can be appreciated immediately for its colour and energy while revealing greater complexity through repeated viewing.
For collectors, the strength of a Bond painting lies in this combination of place, personality and painterly confidence: familiar Canadian subjects transformed through a highly individual visual language.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Rick Bond (b. 1946, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada)
Rick Bond is an established Western Canadian painter known for his vibrant landscapes, streetscapes and figurative compositions. Working primarily in acrylic on canvas, Bond combines bold colour, energetic brushwork and simplified geometric forms to create paintings that sit between Contemporary Impressionism and semi-abstraction.
Raised on James Island in the Strait of Georgia, Bond developed an early connection to the West Coast landscape through boating, fishing and exploring the coastline. That lifelong relationship with place continues to inform his work, from coastal inlets and mountain ranges to aspen groves, prairie vistas and urban environments.
Before becoming a full-time artist, Bond pursued a successful career in pharmacy, completing post-graduate studies at the University of British Columbia and serving as Manager of Pharmacy Operations at Vernon Jubilee Hospital. His transition to painting began in 1980, following a pivotal experience at the Vancouver Art Gallery that renewed his desire to create. He subsequently studied through the Emily Carr Outreach program, Okanagan University College, Pearson College Summer School and professional workshops with Canadian artists.
Bond's artistic development has been characterized by experimentation and an ongoing refinement of his visual language. After working in oil and watercolour, he ultimately established acrylic on canvas as his primary medium. The quick-drying nature of acrylic complements his energetic approach, allowing him to work rapidly and confidently while building compositions from expressive brushwork, layered colour and strong graphic shapes.
His landscapes are recognizable without being strictly representational. Bond reduces trees, mountains, buildings and shorelines into interconnected planes and blocks of colour, creating a sense of movement across the surface. Strong dark lines often act almost like drawing within the painting, defining forms and giving structure to otherwise spontaneous passages of colour.
Colour is central to Bond's work. Warm magentas, ochres, oranges and reds frequently interact with cooler blues, greens and violets, creating luminosity and visual energy. Rather than simply reproducing the colours found in nature, Bond uses colour to communicate atmosphere and emotion, transforming familiar Canadian scenery into something more immediate and contemporary.
His distinctive panoramic formats further contribute to the impact of his work. Tall vertical compositions can give a single tree or mountain form a monumental presence, while expansive horizontal paintings allow landscapes and horizons to unfold across the wall. This combination of recognizable subject matter, unconventional format and expressive abstraction gives Bond's paintings a strong presence in both contemporary and traditional interiors.
Bond has maintained a significant presence within the Canadian art community. In 1999, he achieved AFCA Signature Status with the Federation of Canadian Artists, an important professional distinction. He has also served as President of the Okanagan Artists League, President of the Vernon Community Arts Council and Chairperson of the Images and Objects exhibition at the BC Festival of the Arts.
His work has been exhibited by established Canadian galleries and has entered both private and corporate collections. Bond has received commissions from organizations including Coca-Cola, Tolko Forest Products, Riverside Forest Products, Credential Financial, Royal Sun Alliance, the BC Pharmacists Association and Silver Star Mountain Resort. His work has also been exhibited through galleries including White Rock Gallery, Madrona Gallery, Hambleton Galleries, Adele Campbell Fine Art, Assiniboia Gallery and Au P'tit Bonheur.
Today, Bond lives and paints full-time near Vernon in British Columbia's North Okanagan Valley. After more than four decades of professional practice, his paintings continue to demonstrate the balance that has become central to his work: spontaneous energy held within a strong underlying structure.