painting of a grey whale by tofino artist mark hobson visit the artist's website

Pacific Rim Whale Festival 2011
Poster artist: Mark Hobson

This painting of a grey whale by Tofino artist Mark Hobson is this year’s signature image for the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.

the letter 'F'For the 25th anniversary year, the Pacific Rim Whale Festival board of directors selected Mark Hobson’s portfolio from a range of artists. Hundreds of festival posters are distributed and sold across Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland as a means of marketing the festival and the poster itself has become a collector’s item in recent years.

Mark notes how he has been a part of and close to the festival from the beginning, “I am honoured to be involved in the twenty-fifth anniversary of the whale festival. In 1986 when the first festival was held I was running the Wickaninnish Centre as a Park interpreter. We had opened the centre that March for the first time to feature programs on the gray whale migration. Now, twenty-five years later it is impressive to see how well known the festival and the gray whale's story have become”.

Born in Vancouver in 1953, Mark Hobson was fortunate to spend his childhood in many parts of the world. Drawing animals almost every day as a child laid the groundwork for developing skills as a self-taught artist in watercolour, acrylics, and oils. A fascination with natural history led to a degree in biology from the University of Victoria.

After nine years teaching high school sciences, Mark moved to Tofino on the wind­swept west coast of British Columbia to pursue his passion for painting. Working seasonally as a park naturalist at Pacific Rim National Park, the winter months were free for creativity. By 1987 the demand for his work had grown to the point where he decided to paint full time. He now paints from his floathouse studio and his paintings have gained recognition all over the world for their vibrant depictions of the remote shores and wildlife of the Pacific Northwest. Whether the subject is underwater or deep in the rainforest, the careful use of light is always present to convey a sense of mood in his work.

A strong advocate for preserving the wilderness he loves to paint, Mark has donated many paintings and much of his time to environmental concerns. He was a driving force in the campaign to bring artists to the Carmanah Valley in 1989, which resulted in an award-winning book and the eventual formation of a new provincial park for B.C.

Mark Hobson’s work can be found in Tofino at the Shorewind Gallery and at www.markhobson.com. Posters are available at several venues during the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.

Tofino Time March 2011

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A painting of a grey whale by Tofino artist Mark Hobson is this year’s signature image for the Pacific Rim Whale Festival.

tofino time march 2011