Dominik Modlinski
Born in Warsaw Poland, Dominik Modlinski studied printmaking with a master printmaker from the age of seven. He attended the school for Artistic Crafts until immigrating in Canada in 1987 at the age of 16. Between 1989 and 1993, he studied painting and drawing at the Ontario College of Art, graduating with honors. In school he studied landscape painting and was naturally drawn to the wilderness of Northern Ontario, especially the Algoma Region. In the summer of 1993, the decision was made to move to Algoma to live and paint at the Algoma School of Landscape Arts. The school was located near the tracks of the Algoma Central Railway on mile 71. From here, he was given unlimited access to the wilderness and a greater understanding of the Group of Seven's involvement with the land.
Following his stay in Ontario, he felt the need to explore the different landscapes of Canada. In 1994, he departed on a painting trip across the Rockies. There a passion for watercolour was developed, which became his travelling medium. Each wilderness expeditions encompasses his physical experience of the land and sense of adventure as well as stimulating his painting. Since his graduation, the majority of summers have been spent outside, sketching and gathering reference material that is then taken to the studio to refine during the long Canadian winters.
In the spring of 1995, a bicycle trip from Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory to Vancouver, B.C. commenced. The four-month journey was taken across different ecosystems and gave Mr. Modlinski an understanding of the human impact on our fragile environment. It was during this trip that he ventured to Atlin, B.C. and found what was to become his future home.
The following summer he was invited to teach at the Atlin Art Center, and it was then that the decision was made to move out west on a more permanent basis. That fall he was given his first solo artist show at Libby's of Toronto. He was given great encouragement after having a solo show in such a well known gallery and inspired him to spend the warmer months of the year at his studio in Atlin.
Atlin has given Mr. Modlinski a home base from which he is able to embark on painting expeditions to various parts of northern B.C. and the Yukon. His painting adventures have brought him to many challenging environments and endangered ecosystems. As an artist, the majestic mountains of Kluane continue to stimulate him as much as the landscape of Algoma and the Lake Superior country.
Living and painting in Atlin gave him uninterrupted time for his creative process. This allowed him to be close to the land and gave him the ability to learn and understand its patterns and seasonal changes. The time he's spent painting numerous watercolours in the wilderness has given him the privilege of becoming a member of the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolour.
Many people have shared in his vision and purchased his work for their Corporate and Private Collections. Some of these include...Magna Corp., Husky Injection Mouldings, Pat Quinn - Toronto Maple Leafs, Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. and Altamira Investment Services Inc.
"My work is simply a reflection of what I love to do most;
To be able to live on the land,
To better my creative vision and through art,
To bring people joy and understanding of the environment."
