Roland Rollinmud was born Dec. 14, 1950 in a log cabin in Morley.
His parents George and Georgie (Hunter) Rollinmud had 14 children – seven boys and seven girls. George was a rancher, however, that line of work did not appeal to Roland, so after finishing school at the Morley Residential School, he joined his brother in the carpentry trade. He was also a trapper for fur-bearing animals in his younger days.
Roland has seven children; two boys and five girls: two live in Calgary, one in Kelowna and one in Hobbema; three still reside in Morley.
His interest in art began during his early school years when artwork was introduced with watercolours, which he immediately associated with the myriad of colours in nature.
As he became older, he became very aware of the change of colours in different light, even in winter. Moonlight while sleigh riding would throw beams of incredible colours on snow; reflections on ice and water made Roland’s imagination soar.
Always being an early riser gave him an appreciation of the colours in foliage, especially in the early morning springtime with new wild flowers.
Today, Roland paints in oil medium only and admits, “Even the smell of oil paint creates energy and enthusiasm with projects.” He is a commissioned artist now and can say, “Yes, I make my living from my painting.” With deep satisfaction he said, “Now I can do what I want in my life. I have no worries.”
After attending SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology) in 1972, Roland later expanded his talent to advanced art classes at the Banff School of Fine Arts in 1985. While in Banff, Roland visited the Cave & Basin and remembered the story his grandfather, John Hunter, had told him.
“My grandfather was baptized at this sacred place, and so were my parents.”
In 2011, the Federal Government of Canada commissioned Rollinmud to create a scene with the First Nation People at the Cave & Basin.
This painting was placed on the left as you enter the premises, before the well-known painting of the three CPR men (yes, the First Nation People were there first). In this work of art, Roland depicted members of his family, which would go down in history, as well as the talented artist who created this painting and lives among us.
Roland is passionate about some other work he hopes to accomplish in his lifetime. He has dedicated himself to improve the quality of life for the young people in Morley to reduce the number of suicides still occurring every year. In his efforts to accomplish this he took a suicide prevention course himself, which he can use as a tool to help others.
Roland stated, “This gives our young people a chance in life and I also hope to inspire them with my paintings. I sponsor them and play music at rodeos and different occasions. Music can be very inspirational and makes people happy. I want the world to be a better place for them, like I discovered when I was young.”
Music has been another one of Roland’s talents, although he never had a lesson. He learned to play the guitar and fiddle by ear and used to jam every Sunday with his brothers and sisters. “Music inspires me to be relaxed. I play mostly country music, however, Creedence Clearwater Revival are one of my favorite groups.”
Roland is a humble man, yet in his soft-spoken way he said, “I won seven trophies for my music in competitions in the Calgary and Edmonton area.”
Roland has had some remarkable experiences in his life; here is an example of a spiritually amazing event as he tells it: “Many years ago while I was in the Cave & Basin in Banff, a spirit appeared to me in the way of a small person and communicated with my soul. The spirit said to me, “Whatever you want to do in life can be accomplished, I will protect you.”
I would say that most of what Roland has wanted to accomplish has already been realized.
