Eric Metcalfe

2006 Audain Prize for the Visual Arts

Eric Metcalfe (born 1940 in Vancouver) is an important Canadian avant-garde artist. His work often involves bold patterns, humour and multi-disciplinary collaborations.

Eric Metcalfe studied fine arts at the University of Victoria in the mid 1960’s. Working alongside artists such as Hank Bull, Michael Morris, and Vincent Trasov, he explored comic book-style drawings and Fluxus conceptual art. In the 1970’s, Eric Metcalfe and Kate Craig, his wife and fellow artist, started performing under the persona Dr. Brute and Lady Brute. Dressed fully in leopard print, the pair went to parties, art openings and played leopard print instruments. They also collected examples of leopard print imagery from art, advertisements, magazines, and everyday life, and distributed them through a mail-art network. Eric Metcalfe called their project to cover the world in leopard spots “Brutopia”.

In 1973, Eric Metcalfe and seven other artists founded the Western Front Society, one of the first artist-run centres in Canada. Located in Mount Pleasant, Vancouver, British Columbia, the Western Front Society provided a space for artists to experiment with and create art. The Western Front Society also supported a number of political and activist projects.

Eric Metcalfe was awarded the Audain Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Visual Arts in 2006 and the Governor General’s Award in Visual Arts in 2008. In 2015, he received an Honorary Doctorate from the Emily University of Art and Design. Eric Metcalfe continues to live and work in Vancouver. A number of his artworks can be found in public spaces across Vancouver, including: Stellar (in the lobby of the Burrard Building on Georgia and Burrard) and a geometric mural (on the patio of Sophie’s Café on 4th and Arbutus).