Weghsteen, Robert
Item
Maker Name
Weghsteen, Robert
Biography
Robert Weghsteen studied in Belgium and Britain (with Dora Billington and William Newland) and worked as a potter in Bruges before coming to Canada in 1956, and as Vancouver had few ceramics materials or resources, at that time, he shipped his entire studio, materials, kiln and all, through the Suez Canal.
He was an important teacher at the Vancouver School of Art (1958 to 1964) . During those years his students would have been Wayne Ngan, Heinz Laffin, Don Hutchinson, Glenn Lewis, Mick Henry, Jean Farhni, Leonhard Epp, and Frances Hatfield. He also taught workshops around the province and exhibited pottery in Vancouver where he won a VAG purchase award in 1964. He was one of very few ceramics artists ever given a solo show (1961) at the Vancouver Art Gallery, curated by Doris Shadbolt.
In the early 1960s he started making ceramic murals (Nanaimo Hospital 1963, Royal Trust Building, 1964). After acquiring a barn in Langley in 1965, he focused on large architectural commissions including a brick wall (arrivals area) and tile mural (restaurant) at the Vancouver Airport (1969) and murals for the Peace Arch Hospital (early 1970s) and JB Macdonald Building, UBC (1971).
In 1980 he shared the Juror duties for Retrospect 80, the PGBC 25th Anniversary exhibition, with Hiro Urakami.
In the early 1980s potter Vincent Massey worked for Robert and considered him to be his mentor - see PGBC June 2015 newsletter and Massey’s article. Robert was made a lifetime member of the Potters Guild of BC in 2005.
In 2020/21 his work was included in the VAG exhibition, 'Modern in the Making, Post-war Craft and Design in British Columbia' curated by Daina Augatis, Allan Collier, and Rebecca Rebick
For another excellent article please see Bruce MacDonald’s tribute. https://robertweghsteen.wordpress.com
He was an important teacher at the Vancouver School of Art (1958 to 1964) . During those years his students would have been Wayne Ngan, Heinz Laffin, Don Hutchinson, Glenn Lewis, Mick Henry, Jean Farhni, Leonhard Epp, and Frances Hatfield. He also taught workshops around the province and exhibited pottery in Vancouver where he won a VAG purchase award in 1964. He was one of very few ceramics artists ever given a solo show (1961) at the Vancouver Art Gallery, curated by Doris Shadbolt.
In the early 1960s he started making ceramic murals (Nanaimo Hospital 1963, Royal Trust Building, 1964). After acquiring a barn in Langley in 1965, he focused on large architectural commissions including a brick wall (arrivals area) and tile mural (restaurant) at the Vancouver Airport (1969) and murals for the Peace Arch Hospital (early 1970s) and JB Macdonald Building, UBC (1971).
In 1980 he shared the Juror duties for Retrospect 80, the PGBC 25th Anniversary exhibition, with Hiro Urakami.
In the early 1980s potter Vincent Massey worked for Robert and considered him to be his mentor - see PGBC June 2015 newsletter and Massey’s article. Robert was made a lifetime member of the Potters Guild of BC in 2005.
In 2020/21 his work was included in the VAG exhibition, 'Modern in the Making, Post-war Craft and Design in British Columbia' curated by Daina Augatis, Allan Collier, and Rebecca Rebick
For another excellent article please see Bruce MacDonald’s tribute. https://robertweghsteen.wordpress.com
First name
Robert
Last name
Weghsteen
Career dates (start and end)
1950
2000
Date of Birth
1929
Date of Death
2015
Place of Birth
Bruges, Belgium
Place of Death
Studio location
Formal Education
Major Exhibitions
2020/21 'Modern in the Making, Post-war Craft and Design in British Columbia' curated by Daina Augatis, Allan Collier, and Rebecca Rebick
1980 Retrospect Ceramics 80 - PGBC 25th Anniversary.
Juror, with Hiro Urakami
Juror, with Hiro Urakami
BC Craftsmen '64, Vancouver Art Gallery, 1964
New Design Gallery, 1963
Vancouver Art Gallery, 1961 (solo)
Collections
Vancouver Art Gallery
Affiliated organizations
Links to Further Resources
Modern in the Making Post-War Craft and Design in BC catalogue, VAG 2020
https://robertweghsteen.wordpress.com
http://www.bcpotters.com/newsletters/2015_5_junePGBCNewsletter.pdf
http://sim-publishing.com/bca/bca-0101.htm
Source
Allan Collier
Debra Sloan
Debra Sloan
Item sets
Linked resources
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