Bob Hainstock

Bob Hainstock (b.1945)

Bob Hainstock is a Nova Scotia-born printmaker and art educator whose work explores the tension between urbanization and rural culture threatened by “depopulation, economic strangulation, and environmental degradation.” Hainstock’s first career was in journalism, working as a writer and photographer for the Manitoba Co-Operator for 25 years. Hainstock was always interested in art and decided to enroll in the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design at 46 years old; he has been a professional artist since then.

Hainstock’s unique “rust print” prints are created using sheets of iron and hydraulic bottle jacks. Hainstock first cuts the sheets into abstract shapes (representing the landscape) and sprays the sheets with a vinegar solution and oxidization accelerators. A wet sheet of paper is then laid flat over a piece of plywood and the cut iron sheets are laid over the paper, with another sheet of paper and plywood sandwiched atop—this process is repeated until there is a stack of 6-8 sandwiches. The stack is then pressed in the hydraulic jack between 4-5 days (summer) to 2-4 weeks (winter). The resulting process creates a set of mirrored prints impressed with the rust shapes left by the cut iron sheets. A variety of mixed media is used to develop the final image, including acrylic paint, pastel, ink, and pieces of other turn rust prints, finished off with 4-5 coats of mat or varnish.

Hainstock has been the recipient of numerous awards, including Canada Counil and Nova Scotia Arts Council grants. He currently teaches at Acadia University in Wolfville, NS and is represented within collection of the Art Galley of Winnipeg and several gallies, including Stimul’eye Gallery in Toronto, River Mill Gallery in New Jersey, and Gallery 133 of Toronto.