“There are great pictures all around us if we just take the time to look,” said Jack Tennant, former Cochrane Eagle publisher and lifelong black and white film photographer.
Tennant and Janet Armstrong forge onwards with their unique artistry of painting black and film photographs on canvas – only now the two musketeers have become three.
Over the last couple of months, “Jack and Jan” have teamed up with local Alison King, an artist whose side business includes canvas printing services.
“I just take ordinary black and white photographs … I use film and not digital and I develop my own photographs,” said Tennant.
“What I appreciate is the talents of Alison and Jan. By the time the ladies get done it’s quite something …it’s another example of women making me look good,” he laughed.
A lifelong fascination for the natural beauty of the world around him, Tennant teamed up with Armstrong, artist/owner of Just Imajan Art Gallery & Studio, around six years ago.
It might be barbed wire, a broken fence or a rusted car. It could be an imperfect tree under an expansive blue sky. Or it might be horses grazing under an upset sky. Perhaps an iconic Cochrane symbol.
It’s the quiet, natural settings often passed by that capture the eye of Tennant – who spent a lifetime in the newspaper business.
Before connecting with King, Tennant would take his black and whites – negative in hand – to various canvas printers in Calgary.
Once put onto the typical 9”x12” or 11”x14” canvas, Tennant hands it over to Armstrong – who accentuates and enhances the painting, adding small areas of colour to the focal area of the piece such as enhancing a moody, sunburned sky or shading a dilapidated old car a brilliant red.
Armstrong even puts a little envelope on the back of the canvases to hold the copy of Tennant’s negative – making the artwork absolutely one-of-a-kind.
“It’s a novelty we’ve come up with,” she said, adding that some of the photos will contain hidden animals.
For King, it’s yet another way to collaborate with treasured local artists showcasing the natural artistry of Cochrane.
“I’ve enjoyed working with them … the end result is that Jack is loving being creative,” she said, adding that her canvases are archival-quality and meant to last 100 years – which is a big point for artists.
To reach King, visit https://spectrumcanvasprinting.com/.
To view the Jack and Jan collection, stop by the gallery at 320 1st Street West. The pieces range from $325-$425.
