ABOUT THE ARTIST

Gary Crawford is a Canadian artist based in Warkworth, Ontario, whose expressive landscapes explore the relationships between line, colour, form and light. His practice also includes drawing, pastel and portraiture, where he searches for emotion and presence through colour and gesture.

Born in Halifax in 1960, Crawford studied Fine Arts at York University, graduating in 1983. He began his professional practice in Toronto, exhibiting during the 1980s at galleries including Nancy Poole’s Studio and Gallery Hittite in Yorkville.

In the mid-1990s, Crawford moved to the Scarborough Bluffs, where he continued to paint while raising his two daughters as a stay-at-home father.

Crawford’s artistic career took an unconventional path through twenty years of public service from 2003 to 2023. As a school board trustee and later a Toronto City Councillor, he drew upon his background as an artist to advocate for arts education, cultural investment and Toronto’s creative community. His public career included serving as Toronto’s Budget Chief and leadership roles with numerous arts and cultural organizations.

In 2024, Crawford returned to his studio practice full time. He now lives in Warkworth, a small town in the Trent Hills, with his wife Kitty and their goldendoodle Daisy. From his studio there, he continues to develop a body of work centred on landscape, light and the expressive possibilities of paint.

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ARTIST C.V.

  • 1983
    Bachelor of Fine Arts Honours Degree
    Major: Painting and Sculpture
    York University, Toronto, Ontario

  • 2026

    • ArtComp 2026, Juried Exhibition, London, Ontario — Galeairy Lake, Algonquin #1

    • Art Gallery of Hamilton Art Sale, Hamilton, Ontario — Waves on the Beach and Papagayo Peninsula

    • Ah! Arts and Heritage Centre, Juried Group Show, Warkworth, Ontario

    2025

    • Group Exhibition, Colborne Art Gallery, Colborne, Ontario

    2024

    • New Works, Two-Person Exhibition with Alexandre da Silva Maia, Elaine Fleck Gallery, Toronto, Ontario

    • Group Exhibition, Elaine Fleck Gallery, Toronto, Ontario

    2023

    • Masterpiece Gallery, Toronto, Ontario

    1980s–1990s — Selected Exhibitions, Toronto, Ontario

    • Nancy Poole’s Studio, Solo Exhibition

    • Gallery Hittite, Yorkville, Solo and Group Exhibitions

    • Colour and Form Society, Group Exhibitions

  • 1996
    A New Creed — Commissioned by the United Church of Canada to create original chalk pastel illustrations for its publication of A New Creed. More than 10,000 copies were distributed across Canada and the United States.

  • 2026 — NOW Toronto
    “This former Scarborough city councillor is competing at Canada’s largest art competition” — feature and interview about Crawford’s return to full-time studio practice and his selection for ArtComp 2026.

    2013 — Global News
    “Councillor Crawford paints portrait of Mayor Rob Ford” — feature and interview about Crawford’s portrait and painting process.

    2012 — Birch Cliff News
    “Who knew? The other Gary Crawford” — artist profile by Jacqueline Spicer.

  • 2003–2023
    During twenty years in elected public service as a Toronto District School Board Trustee and Toronto City Councillor, Crawford drew on his professional background as an artist to advocate for arts education, cultural organizations, artists and increased public investment in the arts.

    Selected Accomplishments

    • Helped lead the stewardship of the Toronto District School Board’s significant art collection and its partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario.

    • Helped advance municipal arts funding, including more than doubling the City of Toronto’s investment in the Toronto Arts Council.

    • Played a central role in amalgamating Toronto’s three civic theatres and creating TO Live.

    Selected Leadership & Cultural Roles

    • Vice Chair and Chair, TO Live

    • Chair, Mayor’s Task Force on the Arts and Theatres

    • Chair, Toronto Film Board

    • Board Member, Toronto Arts Council

    • Budget Chief, City of Toronto — nine City budgets

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