Persona

Rogers, Otto, 1935-

Artist Otto Rogers was born in Kerrobert, Saskatchewan in 1935, and his youth was spent in an agrarian setting. During 1952-53 he attended Saskatchewan Teachers College where he studied under Wynona Mulcaster. In 1953 he left the province to enroll at the University of Wisconsin where in 1958 he received his Bachelor's degree in Art Education. In 1959 he completed his Master's degree, majoring in both painting and sculpture. During his stay in Wisconsin he exhibited his work widely and presented several one-man shows. By his departure from the U.S. he had won fifteen awards. In 1959 Rogers returned to Saskatchewan to teach art at the University of Saskatchewan. He received full Professor status in 1975, and between 1973 and 1978 he served as the Head of the Department of Art. Eventually, he played a substantial role in developing the "Open Studio" method of instruction still extant within that department. Rogers' accomplishments within both Canadian and international art circles are noteworthy. He has had major one-man exhibitions at places such as the Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris, the Galleria Del Millione, Milan, Espace 5 in Montreal and the Mira Godard Gallery in Toronto. The artist has had works included in major exhibitions like: "Seven Prairie Painters," Art Gallery of Ontario; "Modern Painting in Canada," Edmonton Art Gallery and "Abstraction West: Emma Lake and After," organized by the National Gallery of Canada. Rogers' works are represented in several major public and corporate collections such as: the National Museum of Art, Iceland; the Shell Oil Collection; the Imperial Oil Limited Collection; and the Toronto-Dominion Bank collection. Besides being an appointed member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Artists, he has received various Canada Council Awards. Another aspect of Rogers' life is his involvement with the Baha'i Faith. After entering the faith in 1960, he served on the Local Spiritual Assembly of Saskatoon until 1963. After being domiciled outside of Saskatoon for several years the artist returned to the city and bought a home that was designated the Saskatoon Baha'i House until 1973. Throughout the remainder of the 1970s he served on several local, regional and national committees. He acted as delegate to several national and intercontinental conferences. In 1988 he assumed an appointment on the faith's International Teaching Committee, in Haifa, Israel.