Fred ORCHARD

ORCHARD, Fred
Toronto artist Fred Orchard left Canada in the early 1950's to pursue a lifetime in painting in what he found to be a freer and more hospitable atmosphere in England. Fred, aged 67, died suddenly late last month while opening a new gallery ;Utopia 2; in Hastings, England. In the company of friends, with a cup of tea in hand, he blacked out and died a few minutes later in the ambulance. Autopsy determined the cause to be coronary thrombosis and complications. He received his training at the Ontario College of Art in the middle 50's where he considered teacher John Elfson to be his mentor, and included among his friends Toronto artists Jerry Scott, John Gould, and George Adamson. He later rounded out his studies at the Ecole de Beaux Art in Montreal. The middle 50's in Canada were marked by an atmosphere of extreme conformism that shrivelled the market for art and often dismissed the creators as ;Beatniks;. His earlier schooling was at the Toronto Beaches Courcellette Rd. school and the RH King school in Scarborough. His art was shown at the Ashmoleon Museum in Oxford and in galleries throughout London and Hastings area, and he was a member of the Royal Society of Arts. His preferred medium was watercolor and ink, and he was known for identifiable streetscapes. He also used oils and received commissions for portraits. He loved rural Spain where he went often and did many scenes there. A charismatic personality, he was extremely popular in Hastings, as much respected for his wit and insight as for his artistry. Fellow artists in Hastings painted his coffin prior to cremation earlier this month. In a fitting tribute they covered the surface in an array of pictures and symbols that typified his high spirit and non-conformist way of life. Fred is survived by his daughter Natasha Harvey and her mother Kara (England), by siblings June, Cliff and Ken (Canada), Ron (Australia), nephew Mark and niece Lisa and their mother Irma (Canada), and a host of close friends in and around the world of art who will miss his unique presence.