Persona

Bornstein, Eli

1922-

Eli Bornstein was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on 28 December1922. He received his undergraduate (1945) and Master's (1954) degrees in Art from the University of Wisconsin, and studied at the Art Institute of Chicago, the University of Chicago, in Paris at the Academie Julian and the Academie Montmartre of Fernand Leger. He joined the faculty of the University of Saskatchewan in 1950. Bornstein has an extensive record of juried exhibitions, and commissioned works. His construction for the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation building in 1956 was the first public abstract sculpture in Saskatchewan (if not Western Canada). Other commissioned work was created for the Winnipeg International Airport; the Wascana Centre; and the Canadian Light Source, among others. He is represented in numerous public and private collections, including the National Gallery of Canada, the Canada Council Art Bank, and the Saskatchewan Arts Board. In 1958 while on sabbatical, Bornstein met Dutch artist/scholar Joost Baljeu. Together they founded and co-edited the first issue of an art periodical, Structure. In 1960 Bornstein published the first edition of The Stucturist, an international art journal currently distributed in over 35 countries. The Structurist is multi-disciplinary: in recalling the first issue, one reviewer was "frankly amazed at the ambitious courage of the magazine, the quality of its design, and the embracing intelligence of the contents." Bornstein has served as editor since its inception, and has also been a frequent - and very often the most thought provoking - contributor. In 1959 Bornstein introduced a new course, 'Structure and Colour in Space,' which has become an area of specialization unique in North America. Internationally recognized as an artist, scholar and lecturer, Bornstein has been described as "a man of humane and noble letters, an artist with indefatigable personal vision and an inspired educator;" a "highly individual artist, and yet the source of inspiration for others." Upon his retirement from the University in 1990, Professor Eli Bornstein was awarded the degree of Doctor of Letters (DLitt), an honour based on the assessment of external referees and given in recognition of a "calibre of scholarship...substantially in advance of what is accepted for the PhD." Dr. Bornstein continues to edit and publish The Structurist and remains an active artist and writer.