This vibrant abstract painting is by Gershon Iskowitz (1921-1988) considered one of Canada’s most unique post war artists.The Polish born artist’s early work was inspired by his tragic personal experiences of life in concentration camps during the second world war. Post 1960’s, having settled in Toronto, Iskowitz often drew inspiration from the beauty of the Canadian landscape. This piece was part of a national project in 1977 that selected 23 artists from across Canada who created small, modern paintings designed to be transformed into fabric tapestries. A flurry of yellow, green, and red brushstrokes pop against the bright blue background.

“My paintings are not abstract, they are real, they are very very much real, I see those things…I paint what I see.” Gershon Iskowitz

Born in 1921, Gershon Iskowitz drew as a child. He would have attended the Warsaw Academy of Art, but the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939. Iskowitz spent six years in concentration camps drawing in secret when he could. Post liberation, he attended the Munich Academy of Art and in 1949, he emigrated to Canada. He taught art to support his own artistic practice, becoming a member of the Royal Academy of Art in 1974. He established an Arts Foundation and a prize that bears his name to support developing artists. Iskowitz’s work is held in both private and public collections.