Ronald Arnott Baird is a Canadian artist. He is best known for his stainless-steel sculptures. He became a member of the

Royal Canadian Academy of Arts The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) is a Canadian arts-related organization that was founded in 1880. History 1880 to 1890 The title of Royal Canadian Academy of Arts was received from Victoria of the United Kingdom, Queen Victoria on 16 ...

in 1978 and the 1971 recipient of the Allied Arts Award from the

Royal Architectural Institute of Canada The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) is a not-for-profit, national organization that has represented architects and architecture for over 100 years, in existence since 1907. The RAIC is the leading voice for excellence in the built ...

Career

Ron Baird was born in 1940 in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. As an artist, he trained at the

Ontario College of Art Ontario College of Art & Design University, commonly known as OCAD University or OCAD U, is a public art university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its main campus is located within Toronto's Grange Park and Entertainment District neighbourhoods ...

. He first became known for his architectural sculptures. Baird largely uses the medium of

stainless steel Stainless steel, also known as inox, corrosion-resistant steel (CRES), or rustless steel, is an iron-based alloy that contains chromium, making it resistant to rust and corrosion. Stainless steel's resistance to corrosion comes from its chromi ...

. Over his career, Ron Baird has received more than 300 commissions for public installations. Many of these pieces are found on boardwalks, harbours, and hospitals. In 1971 Baird erected the tallest steel sculpture in North America (at 33.5 metres) at the Atmospheric Environment Services site (

Environment Canada Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC; )Environment and Climate Change Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of the Environment (). is the Ministry (government department), department ...

main headquarters) at 4905

Dufferin Street Dufferin Street is a major north–south street in Toronto, Vaughan and King, Ontario, Canada. It is a concession road, two concessions (4 km) west of Yonge Street. The street starts at Exhibition Place, continues north to Toronto's nor ...

in Toronto. That year he received the Allied Arts Award from the

. In 1978 he was named to the

. Baird's work '' Spirit Catcher'' was created for the 1986 Expo in Vancouver and placed along

False Creek False Creek () is a short narrow inlet in the heart of Vancouver, separating the Downtown Vancouver, Downtown and West End, Vancouver, West End list of neighbourhoods in Vancouver, neighbourhoods from the rest of the city. It is one of the four ...

between the then Great Ramses II exhibit and McBarge in what is now George Wainborn Park (based on photo with view of

Granville Street Bridge The Granville Street Bridge or Granville Bridge is an eight-lane fixed cantilever/truss bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, carrying Granville Street between Downtown Vancouver southwest and the Fairview neighborhood. It spans Fal ...

and

Burrard Bridge The Burrard Street Bridge (sometimes referred to as the Burrard Bridge) is a four-lane, Art Deco style, steel truss bridge constructed in 1930–1932 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The high, five part bridge on four piers spans Fal ...

in the background). The sculpture consists of 20-tonnes of Corten-steel, and conveys the theme of reconciliation with Indigenous people. It currently sits on the waterfront in

Barrie Barrie is a city in Central Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay. Although it is physically in the county, Barrie is politically independent. The city is part ...

. In 2018, he began a statue for the waterfront of

Beaverton, Ontario Beaverton is a community in Brock, Ontario, Brock Township in the Regional Municipality of Durham, Ontario, Canada. It is located on the eastern shore of Lake Simcoe at the mouth of the Beaver River (Lake Simcoe), Beaver River. History Beaverton ...

, entitled ''Sky Woman''. The location of ''Sky Woman'' is pending on fate of Beaverton Harbour redevelopment. ''Spirit Catcher'' also has a sister sculpture named ''Sea Serpent'' on the Barrie waterfront at Heritage Park. The second sculpture was in a private collection in the Horseshoe Valley area and later Kingston, Ontario. In 2018, Baird was selected for the

La Biennale di Venezia The Venice Biennale ( ; ) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy. There are two main components of the festival, known as the Art Biennale () and the Architecture Biennale (), which are held in alternating ye ...

, and his work was exhibited that year in the Palazzo Bembo on Venice's Grand Canal. Baird is now a resident of Beaverton.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baird, Ron 1940 births Living people Artists from Toronto 21st-century Canadian sculptors 21st-century Canadian male artists 20th-century Canadian sculptors Canadian male sculptors 20th-century Canadian male artists OCAD University alumni Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts