Charles T. Low Photography

Blog #101

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Dave Sheridan, a long-time and well-known Brockville artist and teacher, generously gave me a good half-day of his time, a lifetime highlight for me. He showed me a dazzling array of beautiful art, and told such amazing stories that I had to wonder how he remained so grounded, all while maintaining his high artistic standards.

The TISS sculpture — it literally says TISS, plus I never knew that it has an intergral time-capsule — out in front of the eponymous high school, where he taught for many years, prior to retirement, makes a good example. It involved many students, plus local industry (Douglas Barwick), which had high-school co-op students, who got to work with stainless-steel welding, see the metal treated with acid-baths, etc.

Dave says about that, And from there, it's that creative flow. People want to jump on, people want to be a part of something positive, because there's so much negativity in the world, and it's amazing, it's magical, to watch these things. It's not me. I'm the guy behind it. I feel a part of something bigger, as well as the kids do too. And I've got hundreds and hundreds of kids, who are now adults, remembering those experiences, and how they made a positive effect on their own community ... and ... you've got to give them that community sense, that 'I can make a difference', right?

You can feel his passion.

The Brockville Police sculpture is similar: Dave didn't design it; Jimmy Stinson, one of his students, did. And wow. This wasn't me. I was only a catalyst, and a sort of director, and the guy who would bring people together.

And I wish I could show them all here, but you'll see them, next time you drive by.

The Con Darling statue and the Women's Memorial, both on Blockhouse Island, involved scores to hundreds of students. The TISS mural: Dave was artistic director, not the primary artist.

The twenty underwater statues off Blockhouse Island, for scuba divers to admire: a Sheridan-coordinated project.

He doesn't quite understand how the community, to which he feels indebted, has stood behind him for all those years, bringing opportunity upon opportunity.

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Dave, from an old Brockville family, started drawing as a child, encouraged by his mother (a nurse), and, equally importantly and in a very practical sense, his Uncle Herb. His teacher, Peter Beckett, allowed him to start painting the cafeteria walls, around 1976. Dave describes how that seemingly simple vision, by one teacher, changed his life:

It was a breakthrough moment for a rather shy teenager, not gifted in sports or other more popular aspects of high school life. This new-found identity persuaded me to continue a life long path in art. Working as a high-school teacher. I understood the value of art and how it could affect those students searching for their own place to fit in, and of course not all did. Group and community projects were my specialty.

During this time in the early nineties I was approached by the city's economic development officer, Dave Paul. He offered me the challenge of designing and managing the production of a community sculpture for Blockhouse Island, the Con Darling Memorial. Over 250 students participated in working on this project over an 18 month period. I recall the community pride growing in all my students as we approached the finish line. This project was the most inclusive group project I had ever witnessed at this time. Students from all skill levels being tasked with appropriate experiences. Teachers from various disciplines integrating their curricula to adapt to course-specific applications. This became a model project for course integration and experiential learning before they were common practice. Community groups such as the Lions Club, the Brockville Police Association, and the school board established fund raising campaigns. A massive parade with thousands of people shared in the unveiling. Moments like this create momentum of community awareness and opportunity. During my career the Brockville community continued to offer my class enriching opportunities for my students whereby my students could enrich the community in return.

I must always thank my administrators in return for understanding and allowing me pursue these opportunities: Principle George Gratton, Dale Shannon, Randy Ruttan, Don Lewis but especially Principal Arlie Kirkland. Arlie had a knack for drawing out excellence in all subjects and showed a special understanding of how art can have a positive effect on the school community and the community at large.

And Principal Kirkland (retired), also spoke with me: Remarkable man ... charismatic ... a privilege to work with ... found ways to involve them all, including those less artistically inclined. He built confidence in them.

And then, going way back to the cafeteria project, hinting at his later collaborative career, other students jumped in. Dave had found his calling, and abandoned thoughts of a science career. He soon started selling his own art.

Notable Canadian artists were shown his work, and wrote him letters of encouragement, or he sought them out, the way most young people chase rock stars or sports celebrities.

This leads to Dave's own work, including murals, of a staggering quantity and quality. Many of them he worked on with his late-wife, Diane Godwin-Sheridan, her style and his complementing each other's.

Some murals are refurbishings of older ones, often by other artists. Some are complete repaintings. Some are Sheridan originals. An example of the latter is The Harvest, one of many in Athens. He and Diane discussed creative ideas concerning it, and he painted it, of tragic necessity, on his own. He dedicated it to her, and that's Diane, on the right.

The Gathering, also Athens, on the Masonic Hall building, is from an 1927 small painting by Crawford Slack, painted on the wall in 1987 by Pierre Hardy. And then Dave, in 2020, not only refreshed it but gave it his own Sheridan twist — a hybrid work, let's call it, including Pierre, up on a ladder, painting the first version, and Crawford in the upper right — simply delightful.

We saw a remarkable locomotive/train-station mural in Lansdowne (community support!), illustrating his passion for skilful use of perspective (the train seemingly coming out of the wall and into the bushes), also evidenced in the remarkable Andress Boat Works mural in Rockport.

And then, of course, Brockville. Look in the lower right corner of any mural: many of them say Sheridan. The Brockville train station. The Lily Parsons mural. The Dive Brockville Adventure Centre (soon to be further embellished). And many others.

Simply listing all of his works would occupy an article of its own.

Similar is his long list of awards. The two he particularly cherishes are the prestigious OSSTF Bob Brooks Award (for excellence in school community relations), and the Prime Minister's Award for Teaching Excellence.

Upon retiring from high-school teaching, Dave spent three years as artistic director at The Aquatarium, absolutely in his element. The mural behind the salt-water touch-tank involved over twelve schools, hundreds of students, and community artisans including Diana Earle and Krista Cameron.

The actual ship's anchor, there, benefited from collaboration with the Canadian Conservation Institute. And now he has another anchor, at Brockville's new Reynold's Park.

Dave's resumé includes more! He has, for example, illustrated books.

Dave isn't resting, although he says that if he made one mistake, it was working too hard. He feels that he has accomplished what he set out to do, including raising a wonderful family.

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Other notable Sheridan quotations:

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The Canadian Horse

Since the publication of the original article, I attended the September unveiling of a Sheridan sculpture, life-size, The Canadian Horse, at Upper Canada Village. It's in the parking lot, so go anytime. You have to see it to admire its beauty, and the superlative Sheridan craftsmanship, plus ... both the piece, and the horse, have quite the histories behind them!

Wanna' know more? I have half an idea to do a piece solely on that sculpture. Let me know if you think that worth doing.

(I could give you a hint!)

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Local Artists

Other local artists may follow in this space. I have at least one other article already in the can, and ideas for more. (Suggestions welcome!)

Note: these blogs have now surpassed the 100 mark!

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Check out my current Portraiture project. My next model is you. (Yes. I mean you).

Charles T. Low
Photographer
Blog #101
2025-02-02

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