Frederick Nicholas Loveroff (1894-1959)

Frederick Nicholas Loveroff ( 1894-1959)
Scene: ” Farmyard ”
Size: 12”x 14” ( 16 1/2″ x 18 1/2″ framed ) …….. N.F.S.
Exhibited: “The Paintings of Frederick Nicholas Loveroff” 1981, reproduced on page 40, exhibit number 11.

Loveroff’s affection of the farm was a subject that would appear throughout his painting career. In this circa 1922 oil, the generous foreground with its diagonal contrast draws the viewer focus to the figure working the wagon harness on his team of horses. His signature style of strong fluid brush strokes, gifted sense of colour and lighting compose the entire piece.

A once nearly forgotten artist, with an impressive 17 year exhibition period showing exceptional talent, yet decidedly quits painting at peak of his artistic achievement.

Loveroff, with the financial help of David Alexander Dunlap, a lawyer and mine executive, attended the Ontario College of Arts from 1913 to 1917. The artist credits J. W. Beatty, G. A. Reid, J. E. H. MacDonald and W. Cruikshank as instructors with Beatty the most influential on his style. Even before graduating, Loveroff was exhibiting at both the Royal Canadian Academy and Ontario Society of Artist. From 1915 to 1931 he would exhibit multiple paintings at the Royal Canadian Academy, Ontario Society of Artist and the Canadian National Exhibition, having some of the most expensive paintings priced at $1,200. In such a short period his exhibition achievements were remarkable, in 1920 he became an elected member of the Royal Canadian Academy and in 1921 an elected member of the Ontario Society of Artist.

In 1924, Loveroff participated in the British Empire Exhibitions at Wembley, the most import exhibition held abroad for Canadian art. Here amongst Canada’s leading artist of the day, the Leicester City Art Gallery purchased Loveroff’s “Snow on the Hillside”, a 33 1/2″ x 37 3/8″ canvas. One art reviewer claimed the sunlight and shade of Loveroffs’s snow, equaled A. Y. Jackson’s snow scene of Georgian Bay.

1931 was his last year exhibiting at the RCA, OSA and CNE, finally moving to California apparently never to paint again.

Preparatory work often included pencils drawings and tempera on paper for basic composition and oil sketches on panel capturing colour and shadow. These preliminary works could later be used for larger studio canvases. His main body of work consisted of open landscapes, forest interiors, farmyards and urban scenes.