R Tetrault

Richard Tetrault is a Vancouver-based artist who works in the territory between gritty urban topographies and west coast landscapes. His pieces are infused with his personal sensibilities and his love of improvisation. Series range from Fugitive Streets and Urban Crows to Shifting Weather and Inner Harbours . He sources his subjects from his immediate surroundings, often working 'in situ' to best capture the vitality of his material.

Tetrault is of Metis heritage, with ancestors from the Red River Valley in Manitoba. Of his process, he says, "I am interested in exposing the layers that can be found within the seemingly commonplace, while emphasizing the mythic that can be found within the mundane."

Larger pieces that are developed in the studio, range from mixed media collage to acrylics on canvas. As a printmaker, he strives to take the art of woodcut in new directions, working often in large format and multiple colors. Editions are kept small, and generally printed by the artist in his studio.

Tetrault's work is in the collection of numerous public and private corporations and public galleries. These include: Simon Fraser University, Richmond Art Gallery, Surrey Art Gallery, Burnaby Public Art Gallery, Vancouver General Hospital, Saint Paul’s Hospital, Seaspan International, TeeKay Shipping, Catalyst Papers, Concert Properties, Hastings Law Offices and others . Tetrault also has a long history of creating public murals. These can be found throughout Vancouver, across Canada, and in Mexico, Cuba and Argentina. He has received awards and grants including the City of Vancouver Mayor’s Arts Award (2008) and The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal (2013).

Currently, Tetrault is teaching woodprint at Malaspina Printmaking Cooperative in Vancouver as well as developing new work based on the dynamics of street life in his community of East Vancouver. The artist lives and works in Strathcona, East Vancouver.