Richard Calver
Richard Calver
1946 - 2021
Richard Calver was born in Oxfordshire, England, and at the age of 19 he immigrated to Canada, settling in Quadra Island off the coast of British Columbia. In 1979, he began to study art with well-known printmaker Sybil Andrews, who was teaching from her home/studio in Campbell River, while continuing her masterful body of work in linocut. Quadra Island was only a ten-minute ferry ride from Campbell River, and Calver joined Andrews’s weekly teaching sessions. He recalled the wonderful atmosphere of her studio filled with smoke from the beach wood burning in her old stove, and her insistence on working in natural light. He related that “Sybil talked about her theories of art and ways to capture light, mood and feeling. ‘Grab it while it’s white hot…Put it down as violently as you can,’ ” she advised. She told her students to avoid horizontal and vertical lines, to look for angles and curves, and to draw with dark lines and leave them in, advice Calver followed.

Andrews’s instruction brought a turning point in Calver’s life, and he acquired linocut tools and began to produce a body of work in this medium. Early appreciation of his work came when an art collector visiting Andrews’s studio was impressed with his linocuts and acquired some of his prints, and Andrews bought an impression of his print Dandelions Rejoicing. Calver continued his relationship with Andrews, helping her during her final years, and he stated “it was a friendship I really treasured.”

Natural forms are the foundation of Calver’s imagery and he is clearly influenced by Andrews’s modernist style, formed during her time in England when she was part of the Grosvenor School of linocut artists, which was influenced by Futurism and its fascination with the electrifying pace of modern life. Calver’s work includes botanical forms, figures, nudes and musical subjects. His linocuts are finely detailed, richly coloured and full of dynamic movement.
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Set of 4 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,625
Richard Calver
Set of 4 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500 CDN
Sold for: $1,625 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Set of 4 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,500
Richard Calver
Set of 4 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $3,000 - $4,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,500 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Set of 4 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,250
Richard Calver
Set of 4 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $3,000 - $4,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,250 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Wizard Tree by Richard Calver sold for $1,250
Richard Calver
Wizard Tree
26 x 20 in, 66 x 50.8 cm
linocut on paper
Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500 CDN
Sold for: $1,250 CDN (premium included)
In Good Company: Sybil Andrews & Contemporaries – Part II on Thursday, July 30, 2020
Set of 4 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,250
Richard Calver
Set of 4 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $3,000 - $4,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,250 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Thistle by Richard Calver sold for $1,125
Richard Calver
Thistle
12 1/4 x 9 in, 31.1 x 22.9 cm
1991
linocut on paper
Estimate: $1,500 - $2,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,125 CDN (premium included)
In Good Company: Sybil Andrews & Contemporaries – Part II on Thursday, July 30, 2020
Set of 5 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,000
Richard Calver
Set of 5 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $2,000 - $3,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,000 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Set of 5 Linocuts by Richard Calver sold for $1,000
Richard Calver
Set of 5 Linocuts
,
linocuts
Estimate: $2,000 - $3,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,000 CDN (premium included)
Artists of the West Coast on Thursday, January 28, 2021
Sacrament by Richard Calver sold for $1,000
Richard Calver
Sacrament
12 1/4 x 11 1/4 in, 31.1 x 28.6 cm
linocut on paper
Estimate: $1,500 - $2,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,000 CDN (premium included)
In Good Company: Sybil Andrews & Contemporaries – Part II on Thursday, July 30, 2020
Cormorant by Richard Calver sold for $1,000
Richard Calver
Cormorant
17 1/2 x 14 1/2 in, 44.5 x 36.8 cm
1989
linocut on paper
Estimate: $1,500 - $2,000 CDN
Sold for: $1,000 CDN (premium included)
In Good Company: Sybil Andrews & Contemporaries – Part II on Thursday, July 30, 2020