QUICK REFERENCE ENTRY:

In terms of productivity, Leonard Frank was the pervasively dominant photographer during the first half of the 20th century, but arguably the most sophisticated photographic artist during roughly the same era was John Vanderpant, ably represented by Sheryl Salloum's coffee table collection, Underlying Vibrations: The Photography and Life of John Vanderpant (1995).

Born in the Netherlands in 1884, John Vanderpant was a photojournalist who immigrated to southern Alberta in 1911. In 1919, he opened a portrait studio in New Westminster, then moved to Vancouver. He was recognized in the 1920s and 1930s for his black-and-white bromide prints, his modernist views of surfaces, industrial views and his close-ups of vegetables. He also took some memorable portraits, including those of Bliss Carman, A.Y. Jackson, Frederick Varley, Vera Weatherbie, Jean Coulthard and Rabindranath Tagore.

While promoting and selling works by the Group of Seven, Vanderpant Galleries was a portrait studio that doubled as a mini-Mecca for avant-garde artists of Vancouver from 1926 until Vanderpant's death in 1939. His daughters operated his studio as a gallery in the 1940s. Thereafter the building served as the Cote d'Azur restaurant until its demolition. In 1976, the National Gallery of Canada issued a Vanderpant catalogue.

With 80,000 images of Vancouver taken during the second half of the 20th century, Fred Herzog is the city's premier street photographer, having focused on store fronts, cafes, barber shops, pedestrians, cars and signs since his emigration from Germany in 1952. "It was my goal from the start to show city vitality," he said. His mostly colour images suggest Vancouver was more vibrant and unselfconscious in the fifties and sixties when it was a bustling city in which the working class could still afford to live. Herzog began to sell his work only in 1970. His book, accompanying a retrospective at the Vancouver Art Gallery, is Fred Herzog: Vancouver Photographs (2007), with textual contributions from Grant Arnold and Michael Turner.

Vancouver's Jeff Wall has been British Columbia's most successful photographer internationally.

FULL ENTRY:

Sheryl Salloum provided an appreciative study of the life and work of the most sophisticated photographic artist of Vancouver during the first half of the 20th century, John Vanderpant. Her coffee table book Underlying Vibrations: The Photography and Life of John Vanderpant was nominated for a B.C. Book Prize in 1996.

Born in Alkmaar, Netherlands on January 11, 1884, Vanderpant was a photojournalist who immigrated to southern Alberta in 1911 with his wife. In 1919, they moved to New Westminster where he opened a portrait studio, subsequently moving to Vancouver. His work became internationally recognized in the 1920s and 1930s for his black & white bromide prints and his modernist views of surfaces, industrial views and portraits, plus his close-ups of vegetables. He also took some memorable portraits, including those of Bliss Carman and A.Y. Jackson, and one of Rabindranath Tagore in 1929. While promoting and selling works by the Group of Seven, Vanderpant Galleries was a mini-Mecca for avante-garde artists of Vancouver from 1926 until Vanderpant's death on July 24, 1939. His daughters operated his studio as a gallery in the 1940s. Thereafter the building served as the Cote d' Azur restaurant until its demolition. Prior to her book, Sheryl Salloum published John Vanderpant and the Cultural Life of Vancouver, 1920-1939 [BC Studies, No. 97, Spring 1993].

Born in Nelson, B.C. on May 2, 1950, Sheryl Salloum has a B.A. Simon Fraser University, with an English major and Early Childhood minor. She was an elementary and high school teacher in B.C. from 1974 to 1989. She began her independent writing career in 1983. Her articles on fine arts, literature, local history and social issues has appeared in B.C. Parent News Magazine, BC Studies, British Columbia Historical News, Focus on Adoption, Maturity Magazine, Photographic Canadiana, Raincoast Chronicles, The Malcolm Lowry Review and Vancouver magazine.

[For other authors pertaining to photography, see abcbookworld entries for Adams, Bryan; Adney, Tappan; Allen, Richard Edward; Andrews, Ralph; Baker, Carol; Ballantyne, Bob; Ballard, Jill; Barnholden, Michael; Bartosik, John; Birrell, Andrew J.; Blevins, David; Blohm, Hans; Bourdon, Donald; Breen, David; Brière, Elaine; Butler, A.P.; Campbell, Betty; Campion, David; Carey, Wendy; Carter, Anthony; Cheadle, Chris; Chesher, Deborah; Clarkes, Lincoln; Congdon-Martin, Douglas; Cox, H.G.; Curran, Douglas; Currie, Rod; Curtis, Edward S.; Cyr, Helene; Czolowski, Ted; De Volpi, Charles P.; Dekur, William; Denton, Don; Douglas, Stan; Dowden, Graham; Emmons, George Thornton; Ernst, Trent; Fiegehen, Gary; Fischer, George; Fitzharris, Tim; Francis, Daniel; Galloway, C.F.J.; Garnier, Karie; Garrett-Petts, W.F.; Gauvin, Brian; Gilbert, Paul; Goering, Dag; Grant, Peter; Gregory, Doane; Griggs, William E.; Haegert, Dorothy; Hainsworth, Gavin; Hanby, Bernard; Harmon, Byron; Harris, Brian; Harris, Chris; Harvey, Al; Harvey, Gail; Hayward, Alex Waterhouse; Heinl, Russ; Herger, Bob; Herrmann, Karl; Hobbs, Jared; Howell, Brian; Hunter, Kendall; Jeffries, Bill; Jennings, Neil L.; Jerome, Gillian; Jerritt, Boomer; Jones, David; Jurome, William Bradley; Kraulis, J.A.; Lee, Evan; Lloyd, Tanya; Lyon, Jim; Madsen, Ken; Marshall, Denis; Matsen, Bradford; Matsura, Frank; Mattison, David; McKeever, Harry P.; McLaren, Keith; McQuarrie, John; Mearns, Lindsay; Milne, Courtney; Minden, Robert; Moe, Karen; Mooney, Shirley; Moosang, Faith; Morgan, Rowland; Morgan, Sher; Morrow, Patrick; Nazemi, Akbar; Neel, David; Nelson, Colleen; Newman, Nancy; Norbury, Rosamond; Nunuk, David; Oke, Kevin; Onley, Yukiko; Orton, Michael; Osborne, Graham; Oulton, Dick; Owen, Tony; Parker, Terry; Parnell, Vene; Patterson, Helen; Patterson, Terry; Pedrick, Barbara; Pettit, Donald A.; Philipson, Claire Leila; Radul, Judy; Reksten, Terry; Reynolds, Reg; Riley, Linda; Robideau, Henri; Ryan, Jim; Ryan, Liz Mitten; Savard, Dan; Sherwood, Jay; Shymanksi, Wendy; Silversides, Brock V.; Sommer, Robin; Sparks, Jean; Speitz, Karl; Spilsbury, Jim; Steltzer, Ulli; Stewart, Susan; Sutherland, Tom; Tepper, Leslie; Tewinkel, Wim; Thirkell, Fred; Timms, Philip; Touchie, Rodger; Vogel, Aynsley; Waite, Donald Ender; Ward, Robin; Warick, Bob; Watts, Ron; Weiser, Judy; Whetham, Bob; White, Cliff; White, Peter; Wigle, Michael; Wilks, Claire Weissman; Williams, Carol; Windh, Jacqueline; Wolf, Jim; Woodcock, Ingeborg; Woodley, Barbara; Woodward, Meredith Bain; Woodward, Ron; Wyatt, Victoria; Yip, Mike; Young, Cameron.] @2010.

Review of the author's work by BC Studies:
The Life and Art of Mildred Valley Thorton
Malcolm Lowry: Vancouver Days
Underlying Vibrations: The Photography and Life of John Vanderpant

BOOKS:

Malcolm Lowry: Vancouver Days (Harbour Publishing, 1987). In Italian: (Fandango, 2004)

Underlying Vibrations: The Photography and Life of John Vanderpant (Horsdal & Schubart, 1995).

The Life and Art of Mildred Valley Thornton (Mother Tongue Publishing Limited., 2011). ISBN 978-1-896949-05-5 SEE REVIEW below

ALSO PERTINENT:

John Vanderpant: Photographs. By Charles C. Hill. National Gallery of Canada, 1976. -- catalogue

[photo of John Vanderpant at right, self-portrait, circa 1928]

[BCBW 2012] "Lowry"