The Subway Group of Artists: Winnipeg's 1970s Underground Art Movement by Mark Jenkyns
A tribute to The Subway Group of Artists (Winnipeg’s 1970s Underground Art Movement) and their continuous struggle to exhibit their work. They were one of Canada’s Four Great Artist Coalitions of the 1900s- Group of Seven, Toronto Eleven, Regina Five and Subway.Included is the history of the group, biographies and examples of their works of art.In the early 70s there was not much of a contemporary gallery scene in Winnipeg where the Subway Group was formed… the underground art movement. Their work was not mainstream landscapes and flowers and they were bonded by their individual pursuits in creating their more contemporary passions. The core members were Robert Achtemichuk, Tony Allison, David Anderson, Noel Bebee, Ken Chernavitch, Arthur Horsfall MSA,RCA, E.J. (Ted) Howorth, Mark Jenkyns (Group leader), Wade Jones, Larry Kissick MSA, John Mair, Luther Pokrant RCA, Steve Prudente, Bill Putco, Stan Taniwa. Later additions were Adrienne Diner, Ted Godwin OC,LLD,RCA, Norval Morriseau OC, RCA and F.J. Visscher. This book pays homage to this talented group of artists.
Mark Jenkyns enjoys a unique career in Art. His allegorical detailed drawings, semi-cubist pastels and stylized ink works have been exhibited
in Canada, USA, and France. His illustrations, bendable characters, and bronzes have been widely circulated through commercial end-users throughout Canada. He is currently working on new work in each of the three categories outlined and now that ‘the kids are gone’ is enjoying a
new period of serious production.
Artist Statement
In art school under Ivan Eyre, I started with very detailed allegorical graphite drawings exploring physicality, emotive gestures. and philosophy. Around this time I met with other artists and formed the Subway Group of Artists. The then current retail availability was very limited so I took it
upon myself to start marketing our work through arranging studio visits as well as lobby exhibits at The Manitoba Theatre Centre. This need to exhibit evolved from MTC to shared space in Perrin Subway Galleries after the Subway Exhibit in The Bay in Winnipeg. This grew into
Subway Gallery on Osborne Street which evolved to include a summer gallery in East Hampton. New York, and a franchise gallery in Calgary, incorporating Canada’s first art leasing company.
Still working on my art, I formalized my imagery with very detailed graphic executions which evolved to naturally simplify and abstract these more prominent evolved shapes (a form of cubism) and marry these with colour. With this evolution, I moved from the principal media of graphite and ink to the color executions in gouache, acrylic and pastels.