Early Life, Family and Training

William Perehudoff enters the world on April 21, 1918, at St. Paul's Hospital in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. His early years are rooted in the rural landscape of the Doukhobor community of Bogdanovka, situated between the towns of Langham and Borden. Life follows the rhythms of a Saskatchewan farm. His formal education reaches its conclusion at grade eleven.

The trajectory shifts toward formal instruction in the late 1940s. From 1948 to 1949, Perehudoff travels to the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center in Colorado to study under the French artist Jean Chariot. This period of training marks a departure from the farm toward the technical rigors of professional art study.

The momentum continues southward. Between 1949 and 1950, he moves to New York, New York, to attend the Ozenfant School of Fine Arts. There, he studies under Amédée Ozenfant. These years of concentrated study in New York and Colorado provide the foundational discipline that precedes his later immersion in the abstraction movements of the mid-century.

Development of Style and Movement

The trajectory of Perehudoff’s practice shifts during the mid-1960s. While his early work engaged with the principles of Purism, his focus turns toward formalist abstraction through a sustained dialogue with American Colour Field and European abstract movements. This evolution is anchored by his participation in the Emma Lake Artists' Workshops, which he attends from 1957 to 1990. These workshops act as a bridge between the Canadian prairies and the radical shifts occurring in international modernism.

A critical hinge occurs in 1962 at one of these workshops. A meeting with a prominent New York art critic introduces Perehudoff to Post-painterly Abstraction. This encounter fundamentally alters his direction. The influence of this movement, alongside the teachings of Kenneth Noland and Jules Olitski, pushes his work toward the expansive, non-referential language of colour field painting. He moves away from explicit representation, focusing instead on the autonomous construction of paint. His compositions begin to rely on the wordless relationships of colour, the intervals between shapes, and the nuanced surfaces of the medium itself.

Key Works and Notable Murals

In 1950, Perehudoff’s brush moved to the walls of the former Intercontinental Packers plant. He painted a series of murals for the facility's executive suite, creating abstract silhouettes that remain significant. These works are considered the last remaining examples of purist cubist art from that period. The murals faced a sudden threat of destruction when the plant was slated for demolition, but they were eventually saved through a specialized removal process. An art conservator, Ian Hodkinson, used a specific method to detach the acrylic paint from the plaster intact. Today, these murals are displayed in a special antechamber at the Remai Modern, built to the same dimensions as the original boardroom. The collection of these murals was appraised at $250,000.

His output during the mid-century period also includes significant abstract works. One such piece, an untitled work, was created about 1957. His practice continued through several decades, shifting toward formalist abstraction as his focus evolved.

• Untitled, about 1957

Honors and Professional Recognition

Recognition for his contributions to Canadian art arrived in stages, moving from regional honors to national distinction. In 1994, he received the Saskatchewan Order of Merit. This was followed by his induction as a Member of the Order of Canada in 1999. These honors coincided with his standing within the academic and formal art communities, marked by his election as a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts.

His influence extended into the academic sphere, where he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Regina. Later, his service to the country was further acknowledged when he was awarded the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal. These accolades reflect a career that transitioned from the quietude of a Saskatchewan farm to the highest levels of Canadian institutional recognition.

Where to See the Works Today

Perehudoff’s presence in Canadian institutions is widespread, spanning from the prairies to the major urban centers of the east. His canvases reside within the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa and the Art Gallery of Ontario. In the west, his work is held by the Glenbow Museum in Calgary and the Remai Modern in Saskatoon. These collections preserve the formalist abstraction that defined his later years.

The reach of his practice extends into the national infrastructure through the Canada Council Art Bank. Beyond these public holdings, his paintings are part of the Montreal Museum of Fine Art. These various locations maintain the physical record of his shift toward color field painting and his earlier explorations in purist cubist silhouettes.