A Life in Art and Education
Ralph Allen was a Canadian painter born in Raunds, Northamptonshire, England. After graduating from the Slade School of Fine Art in London in 1954, he began a significant career in academia and art administration. In 1957, he commenced work at Queen's University, eventually serving as the director of the Agnes Etherington Art Centre from 1963 to 1973. His dedication to art education continued through his tenure as a professor in the Fine Arts department, a role he held from 1972 until his retirement in 1987, after which he became professor emeritus.
In the 1990s, Allen's work was connected to the Aboriginal Teacher Education Program at the Queen's Faculty of Education, which included teaching on reserves in Moose Factory and Kasabonika in 1995.
Exhibitions and Collections
Throughout his career, Allen exhibited in 15 shows prior to 1973 and received several Canada Council grants. Following his retirement, he returned to exhibiting with four shows of new works in the early 1990s, including exhibitions at the Agnes Etherington Art Centre in Kingston and at Rodman Hall Gallery in St. Catharines.
His paintings are held in several prestigious permanent collections, including:
Questions & Answers
Can I study Ralph Allen's use of color across all works?
The color profile of Ralph Allen's work is shown on the artist's Palette Genome page.
Is there a complete list of Ralph Allen's artworks?
Every work by Ralph Allen on this website can be browsed from the artist's All Artworks page.
Where can I see Ralph Allen's artworks arranged by atmosphere?
The Mood Room of Ralph Allen is a page that arranges the artist's artworks by mood.
Is there a chronological account of Ralph Allen?
Ralph Allen's career unfolds period by period on the artist's Chronicle page: a horizontal timeline of the artworks, grouped into career-period chapters.
