Chris James Cooper (1956–2010)
“Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in. I drink at it; but while I drink I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains. I would drink deeper; fish in the sky, whose bottom is pebbly with stars.” — Henry David Thoreau
Chris James Cooper brought an unusual pairing of training to his paintings: a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Ecology from the University of Guelph (1980), followed by a Bachelor of Architecture from Dalhousie University (1984), and registration with the Ontario Association of Architects. That dual foundation — an ecologist’s eye for how natural forms and systems hold together, an architect’s eye for structure and space — shaped a body of landscape work built on close, repeated observation rather than a passing impression.
His subject was overwhelmingly Ontario: Algonquin Park in autumn, the granite shoreline and windswept pines of Georgian Bay, the Bruce Trail. Many paintings began on site — sketched, photographed, sometimes painted directly in watercolour during canoe trips into the interior — and were developed later into oil paintings in his studio.
His work was shown in numerous Ontario galleries and juried exhibitions through the 2000s, including:
- McMichael Gallery, Annual Fall Art Juried Show, Kleinberg (2008, 2009)
- The Artist Project Art Show, Toronto (2009)
- Buckhorn Fine Art Festival (2009)
- Pointe au Baril Art Show (2009)
- Red Sable Gallery, “Two Views of the North,” Toronto (2008)
- The 7th Annual Juried “Little Art Show,” Toronto (2008)
- Kohl Gallery of the Arts, Toronto (2008)
- Casa Loma Art Show, Toronto (2008)
- Praxis Gallery Juried Show, Toronto (2007)
- Distillery Outdoor Art Show, Toronto (2005)
- Wagner Rosenbaum Gallery, “Young Artists,” Toronto (2005)
- Studio Gallery, Toronto (2000–2004)
Chris passed away in 2010. This archive holds the body of work left behind, maintained by his estate.
