Norman Yates: 1923-2014. 
Norman passed away suddenly in February 2014. This webpage is a tribute to his life-long artistic vision and innovative art practices. Much missed by friends, family and colleagues, Norman’s spirit lives on through his extraordinary artworks.  

Norman Yates in his Victoria studio, August 2012.

I visited Norman Yates in his studio in August 2012. He was preparing for a show at Patrick International Fine Art in Toronto the following month. After a lifetime of successful exhibitions and awards, Norman continued to paint every day with enthusiasm. “There is still so much left to learn," he said: “I feel grateful for the opportunity to engage with forms of energy and light through painting.” 

Norman Yates, RCA, AOCA, celebrated his 90th birthday on September 7, 2013. His career as a artist and teacher spans almost six decades. He graduated from the Ontario College of Art in 1951 and began teaching at the University of Alberta’s art faculty in 1954. His work is in collections around the world including the National Gallery of Canada.

LANDSPACE 230 by Norman Yates, Acrylic on Canvas, 120.5 x 213 cm

LANDSPACE 227 by Norman Yates, Acrylic on Canvas, 91 x 152 cm.

After graduating with a BFA from the University of Alberta, April Cimolini (née Bending) pursued an art career in Victoria. Norman Yates taught Cimolini at the University of Alberta. She remembers him as a gifted teacher who managed to find something positive in each student’s work. Norman is kind, very generous with his time, and a remarkable artist, she notes. His ardor for art is infectious.  “I can’t think about Norman without breaking into a smile,” she says.

April Cimolini enjoys exploring the expansive territories in Norman’s paintings. The three-dimensional “landspaces” draw the viewer in. The artist uses whooshing washes of colour to express the vast energy fields of the firmament. “For me, it’s a similar experience to viewing one of Mark Rothko’s colour field paintings,” she says, “that of entering another dimension.”

Co-directors April Cimolini and Patrick Cimolini hosted Yates' solo exhibition at Patrick International Fine Arts Sept 6-30, 2012.

LANDSPACE 189 by Norman Yates, Acrylic on Canvas, 90 x 151 cm. 2004.

In 1972, Norman and his family moved to a large treed tract of land 60 miles from Edmonton. In this tranquil rural setting he first experienced the overwhelming sense of space that permeates his paintings. “It was a revelation to me,” he says. 
“Previously I had focused on the object to be painted, now I began to express the space surrounding that object.”

"The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons in 1834" by JMW Turner, 36 x 48 in. Turner witnessed the burning from a boat on the River Thames.

Around the same time (1972) Norman visited the Tate Gallery in London. He spent many hours viewing several unframed canvases by JMW Turner (1775-1851)

Known as the Painter of Light, Turner created sumptuous semi-abstract oils. In Turner’s powerful paintings, the mystical qualities of light and majestic power of the elements supersede human viewpoint and experience. 

Norman spent hours walking up and back looking at these paintings, trying to decipher Turner’s process. “It was an intimate experience,” he chuckles, “I made the guards nervous by getting close enough to smell the oil paint.”

Norman’s process begins with mixing up acrylic paint to the consistency of cream in plastic containers. He lays the canvas on the floor of his studio and thoroughly wets it with a spray bottle. Picking up containers at random, he walks around the canvas, sloshing and splashing colour down as he moves. 

“Sometimes I climb up a ladder and throw the paint down,” he says. “Or I’ll lift up a corner of the canvas to make the paint run.” The process is unplanned and intuitive and at some point the paint takes over and assists the outcome, explains Norman. It is a moment of pure joy when he realizes the process is complete. 

Norman Yates paintings in the Fran Willis Gallery, Victoria, 2001. Photo: Fran Willis

Fran Willis hosted several Norman Yates’ exhibitions at her spacious loft gallery. The gallery closed in 2007 after 25 years. Fran now works with corporate and private clients as an arts consultant. She is a board member at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. Please direct inquiries about Norman's artwork to [email protected]

Fran is deeply saddened by the loss of her good friend. 
In 2012, she offered these insights into his artistic gifts.
“Norman’s vital energy keeps him exploring, evolving and engaged,” she says. "He encourages younger artists and is confident in his own abilities." Each new painting is fresh and spontaneous, she concludes, demonstrating Norman’s one-on-one dialogue with the universe.

Web Design, Content and Selected Photos: Kate Cino. 
Previewed arts events for 18 years at Boulevard. Now writes the Creative Coast column for Focus magazine.

Kate has a History in Art degree and Public Relations certificate from the University of Victoria. 

This website and its content is copyright of Art Openings, 2009. All rights reserved. Written permission is required for reproduction of photos or text.