Material Type

Artifact

Date Range From

1940

Date Range To

1999

Materials

WOOD, METAL

No. Pieces

1

Length

17.3

Width

1.6

Description

PALETTE KNIFE WITH LONG, ROUND TIPPED BLADE ON BROWN, ROUNDED WOOD HANDLE. THE BLADE IS STRAIGHT. TEXT ETCHED INTO THE TOP OF BLADE READS, “SUPERIOR”. PAINT COATS THE BLADE AND HANDLE, YELLOW, RED, BROWN AND GREY. OBSCURES MOST OF THE HANDLE.

Subjects

PAINTING T&E

Historical Association

FINE ARTS

History

ON OCTOBER 8, 2020, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED LYLE PENNINGTON REGARDING ANY MEMORIES OF HIS UNCLE “MIKE” MICHAEL PISKO (1913-1999), ABOUT THE DONATED DRAWINGS AND ART MATERIALS. ON SEEING HIS UNCLE PAINT, LYLE RECALLS, “WELL, I CAN REMEMBER MY UNCLE USING THIS WOODEN [EASEL] (P20200016007) BECAUSE WHEN I WAS ABOUT SIX YEARS OLD, HE SET THIS WOODEN EASEL UP. HE WAS BABYSITTING ME THAT ONE DAY...I WAS YOUNG AND HE SET THIS STAND UP AND HE SAID, 'WE’RE GOING TO PAINT A PAINTING TOGETHER.' HE GOT A PALETTE OUT AND HE PUT ALL THESE OIL PAINTS ON AND SHOWED ME HOW TO PUT THEM ALL ON AND THEN GOT THIS KNIFE THING OUT, IT’S A PALETTE KNIFE- IT WAS A FAIRLY BIG ONE AND IT WAS A FAIRLY BIG…PAINTING. IT WAS MAYBE 2 FEET WIDE AND 3 FEET HIGH AND I ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS GOING TO PAINT AND HE SAID, 'I DON’T KNOW'. THEN HE STARTED SHOWING ME HOW TO MIX THE PAINTS AND PUTTING THEM ON, HE JUST SLOPPED THEM ON AND I KEPT ASKING, 'WHAT IS IT?' AND HE SAYS, 'I HAVEN’T DECIDED.' AND THERE WAS GREENS AND REDS AND YELLOWS. AND I'M WAITING AND WAITING AND I KEPT ASKING WHAT HE WAS PAINTING AND I COULDN’T MAKE HEAD OR TAILS OF IT BECAUSE HE DIDN’T START ANYWHERE. HE WAS PUTTING IT EVERYWHERE AND THEN FINALLY, JUST IN ONE MAGIC STROKE, THERE WAS A WHOLE BOUQUET OF FLOWERS AND I WAS SHOCKED. AND I SAID, 'UNCLE MIKE, THEY’RE FLOWERS.' AND THEN HE CONTINUED ON AND THEN HE SAYS, 'WHAT DO YOU THINK?' AND I SAYS, 'THEY LOOK REAL.' THEN HE SAYS, 'YEAH, I THINK THIS ONE’S GOOD.' AND THEN HE SHOWED ME HOW TO SIGN THE PAINTING- HE TOOK SOME RED PAINT AND THEN HE THINNED IT WITH SOME TURPENTINE AND HE TOOK THIS LITTLE TINY BRUSH AND HE ROLLED IT IN THE RED PAINT AND THEN HE SIGNED HIS NAME ON THE BOTTOM LEFTSIDE…I REMEMBER IT VIVIDLY BECAUSE I COULDN’T BELIEVE THE PAINTING SUDDENLY IN ONE STROKE MADE SENSE, IT WAS LIKE MAGIC. HE KNEW WHAT HE WAS PAINTING BUT I DIDN'T. I HAD NO CLUE. HE JUST GRINNED AT ME WHEN I SAID, 'IT’S FLOWERS.' YEAH, IT WAS A WHOLE BOUQUET OF FLOWERS IN A VASE...[A PALETTE KNIFE] WAS ALL HE USED TO PAINT THAT PAINTING, JUST ONE KNIFE, PAINTED THE WHOLE PAINTING, THOSE FLOWERS, THEY LOOKED REAL.” “THAT WAS THE ONE TIME THAT I GOT TO SEE HIM ACTUALLY PAINT A PAINTING. THAT WAS THE ONLY PAINTING I SAW HIM PAINT. I DON’T THINK MANY OTHERS SAW HIM PAINT THE MANY PAINTINGS THAT HE DID. HE DID IT SORT OF PRIVATELY I THINK. I DON’T THINK MY DAD EVER SAW HIM PAINT A PAINTING. BUT HE DID COME OVER ONE TIME – WE HAD A DOOR - IT WAS A METAL DOOR LIKE A SCREEN DOOR AND IT HAD A PHEASANT ON IT AND ALL THE PAINT HAD COME OFF. HE CAME OVER AND REPAINTED THAT PHEASANT. HE PAINTED IT FREEHAND AND IT LOOKED REAL. IT WAS AMAZING. THE ONLY OTHER TIME HE CAME OVER WAS TO HELP PAINT OUR HOUSE, AND HE COULD PAINT WITH A BRUSH FASTER THAN A PERSON COULD PAINT WITH A ROLLER AND IT WAS PERFECT. THOSE ARE THE TIMES I SAW HIM ACTUALLY PAINTING OTHER THAN WHEN I WENT TO HIS SHOP.” ACCORDING TO A LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLE, DATED OCTOBER 6, 1996, BEFORE MICHAEL FINISHED HIGH SCHOOL HE HAD BEGUN WORKING PART-TIME FOR ROBERT BARROWMAN, AN EARLY CITY MAYOR AND OWNER OF CITY SIGN WORKS. 15 YEARS LATER WHEN BARROWMEN SOLD THE COMPANY, MICHAEL AND HIS FELLOW EMPLOYEE NIGEL HILL BOUGHT THE BUSINESS AND RENAMED IT CITY SIGN CO. THIS BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP LASTED UNTIL 1970. ON HIS TIME AT CITY SIGN CO. WITH HIS UNCLE, LYLE ADDED, “…I’D GO IN EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE JUST TO VISIT AND I REMEMBER CARS COMING IN AND HE WOULD DRAW WHATEVER THEY WANTED. THEN HE WOULD TAKE THIS – IT LOOKED LIKE A PIZZA CUTTER WITH A WHEEL ON IT AND HE WOULD RUN IT ALONG THE LINES AND PUNCH LITTLE HOLES IN IT. HE WOULD TAPE THE LOGO ON TO THE CAR, A BRAND NEW CAR OR TRUCK OR WHATEVER. AND THEN HE WOULD PUT CHALK ON IT AND PULL THAT PAPER OFF. THEN HE WOULD PAINT THE LOGO OR SIGN FREE HAND WITH A BRUSH AND OIL PAINTS. AND IT WAS AS GOOD AS ANY SIGN YOU SEE TODAY MADE WITH A MACHINE. YEAH, IT WAS ASTONISHING.” “AND THE ONE DAY WHEN I WAS IN THERE AND I ASKED HIM HOW HE DID THE LETTERING AND HE SAYS, “I’LL SHOW YOU.” HE HAD ALL THIS PAINT ON THE SHELF AND THIS BIG TABLE WHERE HE PUT STUFF AND HE GRABBED A PIECE OF PAPER. HE TOOK A PENCIL AND DREW TWO LINES AND THEY WERE PARALLEL. AND YOU PROBABLY COULD HAVE MEASURED THEM AND THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN EXACTLY PARALLEL, AND THEN HE TOOK HIS BRUSH AND SAYS, “OKAY, I’LL PAINT YOUR NAME, I’LL PAINT LYLE.” AND HE TOOK THIS LONG – JUST A REGULAR BRUSH THAT WAS A KIND OF FLOPPY BRUSH AND HE DIPPED IT INTO SOME OIL PAINT AND HE JUST PAINTED MY NAME JUST L-Y-L-E LIKE THAT IN BLOCK LETTERS, IN A MATTER OF SECONDS AND IT WAS PERFECT. AND HE EXPLAINED THAT WHEN YOU PUT THE LETTERS TOGETHER, SOME LETTERS ARE CLOSER THAN OTHER LETTERS TO MATCH, AND HE EXPLAINED ALL THAT TO ME, HOW YOU WOULD DO THAT. THEN HE TOOK IT AND SAID 'YOU CAN DO ITALICS' AND HE MADE THEM ALL SLOPED EVENLY. AND HE SAID, 'I CAN DO IT LIKE IN A JAPANESE STYLE WHERE THE LETTERS ARE BIG ON THE TOP.' AND HE DID THAT ALL IN OIL AND IT WAS LIKE ANY PRINTER THAT YOU SEE TODAY AND ABOUT THE SPEED OF SLOW WRITING. I WAS ASTONISHED.” “SO I USED TO GO IN ONCE IN A WHILE AND VISIT HIM IN THE SHOP AT THAT TIME AND I REMEMBER ONE TIME I – HE ACTUALLY ENCOURAGED ME TO START PAINTING. I STARTED DOING THAT AND HE GAVE ME SOME HINTS, LITTLE THINGS LIKE PERSPECTIVE, VANISHING POINTS, WHAT WERE THE OTHER THINGS, OH, HOW THICK PAINT DOESN’T STICK TO THIN PAINT AND VICE VERSA, AND WHEN YOU USE OIL PAINTS YOU PAINT FROM THE BACK TO THE FRONT. WHEN YOU USE WATERCOLORS, YOU PAINT LIGHT TO DARK, USUALLY – THAT KIND OF THING. HE HELPED ME WITH THAT KIND OF STUFF. HE WAS SHOWING ME.” REMEMBERING HIS UNCLE, LYLE STATES, ”MY UNCLE WAS A VERY NICE MAN. I NEVER SAW HIM EVER ANGRY, EVER. I NEVER HEARD ANYONE EVER SAY THAT HE WAS ANGRY. ONLY ONCE. ONLY ONE TIME THAT I EVEN HEARD THAT HE WAS ANGRY. ONE TIME HE HAD A PAINTING AND MY AUNT DIDN’T LIKE IT SO SHE TOOK OUT SOME PAINTS AND FIXED IT FOR HIM. AND THAT WAS THE ONLY TIME THAT HE WAS ANGRY, THAT I HAVE EVER KNOWN. I THINK HE FORGAVE HER BUT I DON’T THINK SHE TOUCHED HIS PAINTINGS AFTER THAT. SO BASICALLY MY AUNT AND MY UNCLE WERE NICE AND IT WAS A PLEASURE TO GO OVER AND VISIT HIM. HE WAS SO NICE. AND I’M NOT SAYING THAT BECAUSE HE’S MY UNCLE OR ANYTHING- HE JUST WAS A NICE MAN.” WHEN ASKED ABOUT WHAT HE KNEW AT THE TIME OF HIS UNCLE'S ART CAREER, LYLE ADDS, “I DIDN’T REALLY KNOW [ABOUT IT]. I HAD NO CLUE WHAT HE DID. I DIDN’T KNOW HE WAS A FRIEND OF A.Y. JACKSON AND ALL OF THAT…I GUESS HE SOLD THE PAINTINGS BUT I SAW IT MORE OF A HOBBY BECAUSE HE WOULD PAINT A PAINTING AND THEN RE-PAINT IT, LIKE, IF HE DIDN’T LIKE IT HE WOULD JUST PAINT OVER IT. AND BECAUSE HE WAS A SIGN PAINTER. HE WAS ACTUALLY AN ELECTRICIAN BY TRADE. HE WENT TO SAIT AND BECAME AN ELECTRICIAN BUT COULDN’T GET ANY WORK AND STARTED A SIGN BUSINESS AND [IT], TO ME AS A KID, IT WAS JUST A JOB, LIKE DAD’S JOB THAT KIND OF THING, SO YOU HAVE A JOB [AND] YOU GO TO WORK [AND] SO I DIDN’T THINK IT WAS ANYTHING SPECIAL…I DIDN’T UNDERSTAND, AS A KID,... I WENT OFF DOING MY OWN THING. YEAH…HE WAS CLOSE TO FINISHING [HIS CAREER], BY THE TIME I WAS AN ADULT, HE WAS JUST NEAR DONE.” IN 2014, COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT JANE EDMUNDSON CONDUCTED A SURVEY OF ART OBJECTS. THE FOLLOWING BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION ON MICHAEL PISKO WAS FOUND IN A PRESS RELEASE ANNOUNCING THE 'MICHAEL PISKO MEMORIAL AWARD', WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED BY THE ARTIST'S WIDOW AND THE ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS IN 2000, TO BE AWARDED TO A GRADUATING BFA DEGREE PAINTER FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE: "MICHAEL PISKO WAS BORN IN LETHBRIDGE IN 1913. HE MADE HIS LIVING AS A SUCCESSFUL SIGN PAINTER THROUGH HIS BUSINESS, CITY SIGN COMPANY, BUT LANDSCAPE PAINTING WAS HIS LIFE'S FULFILLMENT. TO HONE HIS SKILLS, HE STUDIED THREE SUMMERS AT THE BANFF SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS AND SOUGHT INSTRUCTION FROM SENIOR VISITING ARTISTS WHO CAME TO LETHBRIDGE ON INVITATION OF THE LETHBRIDGE SKETCH CLUB, OF WHICH HE, IN 1937, WAS ONE OF THE FOUNDING MEMBERS. PISKO GREATLY ADMIRED A.Y. JACKSON, THE GROUP OF SEVEN MASTER, WITH WHOM HE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO SKETCH AND PAINT AROUND LETHBRIDGE WHENEVER JACKSON CAME TO TOWN TO VISIT HIS BROTHER. HE WAS ALSO DEEPLY INFLUENCED BY H.G. GLYDE, WHO TAUGHT AT THE ALBERTA COLLEGE OF ART IN CALGARY AND AT THE BANFF SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS AND WHO VISITED LETHBRIDGE TO TEACH ART CLASSES AT THE LETHBRIDGE SKETCH CLUB. IN 1947 PISKO WAS ACCEPTED FOR MEMBERSHIP IN THE ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS. HE WAS A PROLIFIC PAINTER, WHO EXHIBITED REGULARLY WITH THE LETHBRIDGE SKETCH CLUB AND THE ALBERTA SOCIETY OF ARTISTS. HIS WORK IS REPRESENTED IN MANY PRIVATE, CORPORATE AND PUBLIC COLLECTIONS, AMONG THEM THE ALBERTA FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS AND THE UNIVERSITY OF LETHBRIDGE. MICHAEL PISKO PASSED AWAY IN 1999." FOR COPIES OF LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES ON PISKO AND HIS CAREER, AS WELL AS PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS FOR THE 1995 ARTWALK DEDICATED TO HIM, SEE PERMANENT FILE P19920009001-GA. FOR MORE INFORMATION, INCLUDING THE FULL INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION AND LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES, PLEASE SEE THE PERMANENT FILE P20200016001-GA.

Catalogue Number

P20200016009

Acquisition Date

2020-06

Collection

Museum

Less detail