Roy Kiyooka

born Moose Jaw, Canada, 1926; died Vancouver, British Columbia, 1994

BiographyOne of the first Japanese Canadian artists to achieve prominence on a national and international scale, Roy Kiyooka began his art practice as a painter, later turned his focus to poetry and photography, and engaged in a variety of trans-disciplinary, experimental, and community-building work in the Canadian arts scene. Kiyooka began his art studies in 1946 at the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art (now named the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and Art)., going on to create mostly large-scale, abstract paintings. He wrote his first book of poetry, Kyoto Airs, in 1963, inspired by a visit to Japan. He eventually left painting altogether in favor of poetry, photography, music, and performance art. He taught fine arts at a number of post-secondary institutions, including University of Regina, Vancouver Art School, George Williams, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, and University of British Columbia. Kiyooka was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1978.

[source: Japanese Canadian Artists Directory, accessed Feb. 2021]

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