“Landscape is a medium for ideas.”
-Robert Henri
“Whiter than the stones
of Stone Mountain -
autumn wind.”
- Basho
The details in a
landscape mean nothing if they do not express some mood of nature felt by the
artist/photographer.
“I strive to capture internal feelings and the external harmony of the natural
world - the passing seasons of life.”
Jon Butler is a Zen practitioner
and retired newspaper executive who changed his clothes to enjoy the passing
seasons of life. He has been capturing and enjoying the light of La Cloche for
more than 30 years concentrating on solitary, contemplative landscapes and
atmospheric effects.
The La Cloche Mountain range is one
of the oldest in the world. The mountains were formed from sediments that eroded
from major mountains to the north that were as high as the Rockies. It is a
beautiful and spiritual area on the north shore of Georgian Bay with Killarney
Park in the east and the town of Spanish in the west.
Generations of people
have been intrigued by the quartzite mountains, crystal clear lakes, windswept
pines and wildlife. The continually changing light and shadows have entranced
artists, including members of the Group of 7, their contemporaries and lovers of
the outdoors for decades.
The colour, details and
shadows seen in his photographs are achieved through the use of camera settings
and Jon’s unique sense of light. Jon’s exhibition photographs are usually taken
at dawn during the few moments before the sun rises. He uses no additional or
altered colour and photographs with a variety of film and digital cameras
including a 2 1/4 Mamiya, 4 X 5 Linhof, 8 X 10 Agfa and Nikon D80.
His photographs reflect
years of meditation on the subject matter and they draw viewers into the light
of La Cloche. All limited edition photographs are original, manipulative free
and in a limited series of 10 or less.
Jon’s ‘Photo Haiku’ is a
form of mixed media combining limited edition photographs and an original haiku.
A haiku is the expression of temporary enlightenment, in which we see into life
and in this case it is La Cloche.
His photographs are in
private and corporate collections in Canada and the United States. They have
appeared in numerous publications, books, and newspapers and on the CD
‘Willisville Mountain’ by Ian Tamblyn.
“The stark beauty of Jon Butler’s Cranberry
Narrows was judged the Best Photography.” - The Manitoulin Expositor, September
15, 2004
“In some of his works, Butler marries sensitivity
and composition in a wonderfully harmonious union. A stellar piece entitled
Cranberry Narrows offers balance, order, symmetry, and beauty.” The Sudbury
Star, February 18, 2006
“The close, even intimate, relationship and depth
of feeling between the artist and the art is clear in each of the works. On the
whole, the diligence and patience Butler invested in capturing the more illusive
moments of nature’s splendor will affect viewers.” – The Sudbury Star, February
18, 2006
Jon and his wife Kerry
live in the village of Willisville located in the heart of the La Cloche
Mountains. They are founding members of the La Cloche Mountains Preservation
Society and the Willisville Mountain Project, dedicated to preserve Willisville
Mountain and the beauty of La Cloche. In 2011 Jon published the book ‘Visions of
La Cloche, Contemplating La Cloche with Words and Photographs’.
Jon’s photographs are available at Turners Gallery of Little Current, The Art
Gallery of Sudbury gift shop, Killarney Park Store, and The Red Dog Whitefish
Falls.
Participate in your landscape.
-30-
Jon Butler
Willisville
Box 153
Whitefish Falls, P0P 2H0
1-705-285-0823 lacloche@gmail.com
Curriculum Vitae - Jon Butler
Solo/Two Person Exhibitions
2007 The Kirkland Lake Museum of Northern History – Visions of La Cloche - solo
2007 Propeller Centre for the Visual Arts, Toronto – Visions of La Cloche -solo
2007 Centennial Museum & Gallery, Sheguiandah – Visions of La Cloche - solo
2007 Temiskaming Art Gallery, Haileybury – Visions of La Cloche - solo
2006 Espanola Little Theatre - solo
2006 Sudbury Theatre Centre - solo
2005 Turners Gallery of Little Current - solo
2005 Cedar Street Gallery Sudbury
2005 Black Cat Too, Sudbury
2004 Cedar Street Gallery, Sudbury
Group Exhibitions
2011 Killarney Art Show
2011 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
2010 Cross-Pollination, Gore Bay Museum
2010 Killarney Art Show
2010 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
2010 Willisville Mountain Project, Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah
2010 Willisville Mountain Project, Art Gallery of Sudbury
2010 Willisville Mountain Project, Temiskaming Art Gallery
2010 Willisville Mountain Project, Museum of Northern History, Kirkland Lake
2009 Manitoulin Fine Arts Association Exhibit, Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah
2009 Willisville Mountain Project, Whitefish Falls
2009 Artastic Fusion, M’chigeeng
2009 Local Colour, Art Gallery of Sudbury
2008 Cross-Pollination, Gore Bay Museum
2008 Manitoulin Fine Arts Association Exhibit, Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah
2008 Killarney Art Show
2008 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
2008 Art of Nature, Green Living Show, Toronto
2008 Book Lover’s Ball, Toronto
2008 Artastic Fusion, M’chigeeng
2007 The Muskoka Place Gallery, Port Carling
2007 Killarney Art Show
2007 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
2007 Arta Gallery, Toronto – Rebirth
2007 Art of Nature, Green Living Show, Toronto
2007 Artastic Fusion, M’chigeeng
2006 Arta Gallery, Toronto – Timeless Beauty
2006 Deer Trail Studio Tour, Elliot Lake
2006 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
2006 Artastic Fusion, M’chigeeng
2005 The Deer Trail Studio Tour, Elliot Lake
2005 Manitoulin Art Tour, Turners Gallery
Juried Exhibitions
2011 RBC Dominion Securities ‘Art Impact’ Juried Art Show - Sudbury
2010 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah – Curator’s
Award
2010 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – first place photography
2009 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls
2008 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah – first
place
photography
2008 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – honourable mention photography
2007 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah
2007 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – honourable mention photography
2006 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah -
honourable
mention
2006 Massey Area Museum Art Show
2006 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls - second place photography
2005 Massey Area Museum Art Show
2005 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah
2005 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls - first place photography
2004 Massey Area Museum Art Show - first place photography
2004 Heritage Alive Art Show at the Centennial Museum of Sheguiandah - first
place
photography
2004 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – honourable mention photography
2003 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – honourable mention photography
1995 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – first place photography
1994 La Cloche Art Show, Whitefish Falls – honourable mention photography
1986 La Cloche Art Show, Willisville
Grants
2009 Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance
Program
2007 Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Program
2006 Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance Program
Bibliography
2011 ‘Visions of La Cloche, Contemplating La Cloche with Words and Photographs’
by Jon Butler
2011 The Manitouin Expositor, April 20 ‘Political action saves Willisville
Mountain from
wrecker’s ball’
2011 The Sudbury Star, April 16 ‘Preservationists laud decision as historic’
2011 Globe and Mail, Friday, April 15 ‘Multinational mining company surrenders
land
rights to area which inspired Group of Seven
2010 ‘Manitoulin Cross Pollination, A Tour Through Time’ catalogue
2009 ‘La Cloche Country, It’s History, Art and People’ by Jim Waddington, D’Arcy
O’Neill &
Derek Coleman
2009 ‘The Willisville Mountain Project’ catalogue
Other
2007 to
2010 Co-ordinator of the Willisville Mountain Project – 45 artists, 1
mountain
2009
Photographs included in McMichael Gallery’s online site ‘Group of Seven
Legacy Project’