About Lewis > Biography

Artist Biography

Ryan Lewis was born in Calgary, Alberta in 1977 and grew up surrounded by the mountains and prairies of Southern Alberta. He graduated from the Haskayne School of Business with a focus on Marketing and Information Technology in 2001. In recent years, Lewis has also traveled both at home and abroad, and has come to see the Alberta landscape as incredibly diverse and distinctive – the perfect place for an artist to live. He now resides in Calgary and has set up his art studio to begin painting on a full time basis.

Lewis combines his observations in nature with his own image of reality to create works that reflect the feel and colours of the Canadian landscape. He cites a wide range of influences to his own style. In particular, inspirations from The Group of Seven and Emily Carr have enhanced his desire to paint and focus on his artwork. Of his own style Lewis states, “My work represents the vibrant colours and movement of nature. I use broad strokes and vibrant colours to suggest the image then let the viewer's imagination fill in the details.” Lewis displays the majesty of the Waterton Lakes area with a creative use of light and shape. The result is a unique vision of Western Canada.

During 2004 Lewis continued to develop his art through donations to two separate charities. The first was a donation of a 16 x 20 inch oil painting named "Red Rock Canyon" to the Waterton Heritage Society for their annual Heritage Ball. The second was donated to the Okotoks Hospice Society. It is a 12X16 inch watercolour named "Impression of Blackiston". Both pieces were well taken and greatly appreciated.

He also showed at the Gust Gallery in Waterton Lakes National Park, Alberta and has completed a commissioned work named "Mount Tecumpseh" depicting a mountain landscape with the rich colours of the Crow's Nest Pass in Alberta, Canada.

Recently, Lewis has begun painting with acrylics and exploring two separate series. The first is a dedication to the Southern Alberta landscape, focusing on the many parks such as Dinosaur Provincial, Waterton Lakes and Banff National. The second series focuses more on the flora of the Rocky Mountain Parks. Specifically, Lewis has painted a group of Beargrass pictures that bring out the bold contrast of the delicate white flower from the dark forest backgrounds.

After a successful first half of 2005, Lewis looks forward to the fall and early winter seasons.