Luke Lindoe
1913-2000
Luke Lindoe: potter, geologist, businessman, teacher, painter, pioneer artist, loner, leader, friend, anathema
Luke died the other day. I had not seen him in quite awhile but that was okay,I Oftenwent long periods of time between visits.He had alwaysbeen a private man but in the last little while he had become even moreso. I think it botheredhim that he was starting to get old. Getting old was a processthat Luke managed to put off longer than most of us will be able to do. Getting old and dying was never really in the booksfor Luke.Somesay becausehe was too ornery but I would say that as an artist he still had stuff to do.
Luke'slife has been well documented. He moved around a lot with his mother in his early years and attended the Provincial Institute of Technology and Art in the latter part of the depression (1935-1940)and the Ontario College of Art(1940-1941).He spent the war years working for the Geological Survey of Canada and various mining companies. From 1946to 1957he taught at the institution that later becamethe Alberta College of Art and had the good sense to start the Ceramics program. He started LindoeStudios in 1955and Plainsman Clays in 1964.He, at various times was involved in the Alberta Society of Artists, the Canadian Society of Painters in
Watercolourand numerousinternational and national ceramicassociations.He was influentialin the holding of Ceramic International'73 in Calgary,which was the first meeting outside of Europe of the InternationalAcademyof Ceramics.In his work life he was often called upon to act as a consultant to various government organizations and private companies in the area of ceramics.There was a long associationwith I-XLIndustries, the AlbertaFoundationof the Arts and their collectiveforebears.
But that really didn't make much difference.He still wanted to fill anotherlife or two.
He was a man of contradictions.He could be abrasiveas hell but with me he was a gentle teacher.He always critiqued my potsbut never criticizedthem.He was the great loner who loved the company of others.He as a quiet man who could tell stories around a campfire all night. His academictraining was in the arts and not in the sciencesbut thereare thosethat would argue that he knew more about the geology of the GreatCentralPlainsand the claybeds under them than anyone else. He had at times little use for formal schoolsbut the CeramicsDepartmentat the Alberta College OfArt and Design would not existif it were not for him. He struck fear in to the heartsof all those that loved him. He was terriblysingle-minded which may have been the reasonhe could work on three or four majorart piecesat a time and often
