"What matters but risk? There’s nothing. You’ve got to take the chance, with the accumulation of all your knowledge and intelligence: then comes the adventure"

(Gordon Rayner, 1994)

Gordon Rayner was born in Toronto in 1934. Throughout 40 years of making art, Rayner’s work has been consistently innovative, predictably changeable. Primarily a painter, he has explored sculpture, ceramics, printmaking, collage and assemblage as well as film.

Gordon Rayner has exhibited extensively, with numerous solo exhibitions to his credit including the Isaacs Gallery, Toronto (1960, 1961, 1964, 1966, 1968,1971, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990), Blue Barn Gallery, Ottawa (1965), Art Gallery of Windsor (1973), Gordon Rayner Retrospective Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa travelling to London Regional Art Gallery, Art Gallery of Windsor, Rodman Hall, St. Catherines, Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery, Concordia University Art Gallery, Montreal, New Brunswick Museum, St. John, Art Gallery of Memorial University, St. John’s, Nfld., Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Fredericton, N.B., Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery, Saskatchewan, Southern Alberta Art Gallery, Lethbridge, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (1979/80), Constructed Paintings Max Hutchinson Gallery, New York (1984), Moore Gallery, Hamilton (1985), Gordon Rayner: Constructed Paintings Concordia Art Gallery, Montreal (1987), Raynerart Exhibition Art Gallery of Peel (1990), Constructed Paintings Durham Art Gallery (1990), Rayner/Coughtry Drabinsky Gallery (1991), Casa de las Americas Havana, Cuba (1993), Evelyn Aimis Gallery, Boca Raton, Florida (1993), Gordon Rayner: New Work Drabinsky Gallery, Toronto (1993), The Oaxaca Suite Leo Kamen Gallery, Toronto (1995), New Abstract Painting Leo Kamen Gallery, Toronto (1997), Recent Paintings and Painted Constructions Moore Gallery, Toronto (1998).

He has also been included in many group shows such as Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (1962, 1964), Some Canadians In Spain Art Gallery of Windsor (1965), 6th Binennial of Canadian Painting National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa (1965), Museum of Modern Art, New York (1967), Canadian Artists ‘68 Art Gallery of Ontario (1968), Coughtry/Rayner/Markle National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa (travelling-1968), International Biennial of Prints National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo (1971), Toronto Painting 1953-65 National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa (travelling-1972), Inaugural Exhibition Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (1974), A Survey of Canadian Painting, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (1975), A Toronto Sensibility Art Gallery at Harbourfront, Toronto (travelling-1978), The Artists’ Jazz Band Canadian Cultural Centre, Paris (1978), 6th Dalhousie Drawing Exhibition Scottsdale Art Centre, Arizona (1982), The Colour Connection Winnipeg Art Gallery (1983), Toronto Painting of the 1960’s Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto (travelling-1983/84).

The work of Gordon Rayner can be found in many private corporate and public collections including A.E. LePage, Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Kingston, Art Gallery of Windsor, Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, Art Gallery of Brant, Brantford, Cadillac Fairview Corporation, Canada Council Art Bank, Cineplex Odeon Corporation, Concordia Art Gallery, Montreal, Confederation Art Gallery, Charlottetown, Crown Life, Department of External Affairs, Ottawa, First City Trust, Vancouver, Friends of Confederation Centre Trust, Charlottetown, Hart House Art Gallery, University of Toronto, Hirshorn Collection, Washington, Indusmin Limited, Toronto, Liquid Paper Limited, Dallas, London Regional Art Gallery, Lyndhurst Hospital, Toronto, Memorial Art Gallery, St. John’s, Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, Museum of Modern Art, New York, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, Norcen Energy Resources Ltd., Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery, Regina, Osler, Hoskin Harcourt, Toronto, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Princess Margaret Hospital, Toronto, Robert McLaughlin Art Gallery, Oshawa, Rothman’s of Pall Mall, Society of Contemporary Art, Santiago, Chile, The Honourable John B. Aird, Thorne Riddell, Toronto, Toronto-Dominion Bank, University of Waterloo, Vancouver Art Gallery.