Stephen Lack (born January 1, 1946) is a Canadian artist and former actor and screenwriter best known for his leading role in

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

's '' Scanners'' and

Allan Moyle Allan Moyle (born 1947 in Shawinigan, Quebec) is a Canadian film director. He is best known for directing the films '' Pump Up the Volume'' (1990) and ''Empire Records'' (1995). Career His first major film was '' Times Square'' (1980). During th ...

's '' The Rubber Gun'', for which he was nominated for two

Genie Awards The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for scul ...

Early life and education

Lack was born in 1946 in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, Quebec, Canada, and gained a Bachelor of Arts in

Psychology Psychology is the science, scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immens ...

from

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Univer ...

in 1967, followed by a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts ...

in Sculpture at

Universidad de Guanajuato The Universidad de Guanajuato (in English, the University of Guanajuato) is a university based in the Mexican state of Guanajuato, made up of about 33,828 students in programs ranging from high school level to the doctorate level. Over 17,046 of ...

San Miguel de Allende San Miguel de Allende () is the principal city in the municipality of San Miguel de Allende, located in the far eastern part of Guanajuato, Mexico. A part of the Bajío region, the city lies from Mexico City, 86 km (53 mi) from Queré ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

, in 1969.

Career

Although he also produces drawings and sculpture, his primary medium is painting; he specializes in American scenes (urban, cultural, and landscapes) in a style that has been described as Neo-Expressionist. His art has won a number of awards and residencies. He was artist in residence at Ancienne Manufacture Royale,

Limoges Limoges (, , ; oc, Lemòtges, locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region ...

, and Banff Institute of the Arts in 1988,

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

Dearborn, Michigan Dearborn is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 109,976. Dearborn is the seventh most-populated city in Michigan and is home to the largest Muslim population in the United States per ...

in 1989, and

Connecticut College Connecticut College (Conn College or Conn) is a private liberal arts college in New London, Connecticut. It is a residential, four-year undergraduate institution with nearly all of its approximately 1,815 students living on campus. The college w ...

and

Skidmore College Skidmore College is a private liberal arts college in Saratoga Springs, New York. Approximately 2,650 students are enrolled at Skidmore pursuing a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree in one of more than 60 areas of study. Histo ...

in 1999. He received awards in the "Painting" category from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

in 1987 and 1993, and the

Canada Council The Canada Council for the Arts (french: Conseil des arts du Canada), commonly called the Canada Council, is a Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation established in 1957 as an arts council of the Government of Canada. It acts as the fede ...

for the Arts in 1991.Official Stephen Lack website
, stephenlackart.com. Retrieved 21 June 2017. In 2018 Xeno-Optic with the assistance of the Research Services office at St. Thomas University in Canada published a 136-page text on the drawings of Stephen Lack titled There is a War, with an essay by Virgil Hammock, and a foreword by Ronald Edsforth. The text reflects Stephen Lack's ability to see the world dominated by American conflicts as Goya saw his world in his work

The Disasters of War ''The Disasters of War'' ( es, Los desastres de la guerra) is a series of 8280 prints in the first published edition (1863), for which the last two plates were not available. See "Execution". prints created between 1810 and 1820 by the Spani ...

, or

Jacques Callot Jacques Callot (; – 1635) was a baroque printmaker and draftsman from the Duchy of Lorraine (an independent state on the north-eastern border of France, southwestern border of Germany and overlapping the southern Netherlands). He is an impor ...

Les Grandes Misères de la guerre ''Les Grandes Misères de la guerre'' (; English: ''The Great Miseries of War'' or ''The Miseries and Misfortunes of War'') are a series of 18 etchings by French artist Jacques Callot (1592–1635), titled in full ''Les Misères et les Malheurs d ...

(The Great Miseries of War). The best-known films in which he appeared are '' Scanners'' in 1981 and '' Dead Ringers'' in 1988, but he has also appeared in cameo roles and independent films. Credits include '' Montreal Main'' (1974), '' The Rubber Gun'' (1978, which he also co-wrote with

, winning

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for sc ...

s for both

Performance A performance is an act of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Management science In the work place ...

and

Screenplay ''ScreenPlay'' is a television drama anthology series broadcast on BBC2 between 9 July 1986 and 27 October 1993. Background After single-play anthology series went off the air, the BBC introduced several showcases for made-for-television, f ...

), '' Head On'' (aka ''Deadly Passion'', 1980); '' Perfect Strangers'' (1984), and ''

All the Vermeers in New York ''All the Vermeers in New York'' is a 1990 American film written, directed and produced by Jon Jost. Plot Mark, a Wall Street financial broker, falls in love with a French actress Love at first sight, at first sight, due to her resembling a Johan ...

'' (1990).

Personal life

He lives and works in New York, and is the father of Asher Lack, front-man of the band Ravens & Chimes.Profile
, ''Montreal Gazette''. Retrieved 21 June 2017.

Filmography

* '' Montreal Main'' (1974; also writer) – Steve * ''

The Angel and the Woman ''The Angel and the Woman'' (french: L'Ange et la femme) is a 1977 Canadian fantasy film, fantasy romance film directed by Gilles Carle and starring Carole Laure, Lewis Furey, and Stephen Lack. The film follows a woman who, after being brutally sho ...

'' (1977) – Boss * '' The Rubber Gun'' (1977; also writer) – Steve * '' Head On'' (1980) – Peter Hill * '' Scanners'' (1981) – Cameron Vale * '' A 20th Century Chocolate Cake'' (1984) * '' Perfect Strangers'' (1984) – Lt. Burns * '' Dead Ringers'' (1988) – Anders Wolleck * ''

'' (1990) – Mark * '' Ernstfall in Havanna'' (2002)

Awards and nominations

* 1980

Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role to the best performance by a lead actor in a Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years o ...

: '' The Rubber Gun'' (nominated) * 1980

Genie Award for Best Screenplay The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television presents one or more annual awards for the Best Screenplay for a Canadian film. Originally presented in 1968 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, from 1980 until 2012 the award continued as part of the Gen ...

: '' The Rubber Gun'' (nominated)

References

External links

* *
Arts & Minds
bravo.ca
Video profile
akamai.com
Journal of Contemporary Art, NYC, 1988
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lack, Stephen 1946 births Living people 20th-century Canadian painters Canadian male painters 21st-century Canadian painters Canadian male film actors Male actors from Montreal McGill University Faculty of Science alumni Postmodern artists 20th-century Canadian male actors 21st-century Canadian male actors Canadian male screenwriters Writers from Montreal Artists from Montreal Canadian expatriates in the United States 20th-century Canadian male artists 21st-century Canadian male artists 20th-century Canadian screenwriters 20th-century Canadian male writers