Lionel Allingham and Nam Duc Nguyen
A Second Horizon
Lionel Allingham and Nam Duc Nguyen
January 30, 2025 - July 13, 2025
The Art Gallery of Grande Prairie is pleased to present an exciting new two-person exhibition Lionel Allingham and Nam Duc Nguyen: A Second Horizon opening January 30th, 2025.
Kicking off the AGGP’s 50th Anniversary Year, this will be a significant exhibition encompassing the entire ground floor of the gallery. The first in a series of artist pairings, A Second Horizon showcases a local artist from the Permanent Collection, Lionel Allingham, with a contemporary artist with ties to the region, Nam Duc Nguyen. The paintings of Allingham and Nguyen celebrate the abstracted landscape of Northwestern Alberta through two shared, yet unique perspectives.
Curated by Jessica Groome
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
ARTIST BIO
Lionel Allingham (b. 1947, Tunbridge Wells, England) immigrated to Canada at an early age, and grew up along the Ottawa River. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts with Distinction from Sir George Williams University (now Concordia University) in 1975. Following the completion of his post-graduate studies, he earned his diploma in Art Education (1976) and achieved honours in Studio Study. After teaching art in Montréal as funded by a federal grant (1973), he taught art in Île-à-la-Crosse, Saskatchewan (1976–1978). From there, he and his wife Daniela Allingham moved to a remote acreage in Goodfare, Alberta where they built their home and studio, and started a family. Soon thereafter, Lionel pursued a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Calgary (1983–1986), and continued developing his brilliant career as an educator. He was one of the founding members of the Visual Arts Program at Grande Prairie Regional College (now Northwestern Polytechnic) from 1978–2005, where he was instrumental in the development of the Visual Arts program including painting and sculpture. To this day, Lionel and Daniela reside in their home of 46 years, in Goodfare, Alberta.
ARTIST BIO
Nam Duc Nguyen (b. 1982, Edmonton, Alberta) is a Vietnamese-Canadian artist based in Berlin, Germany, where he has lived and worked for the past 15 years. In 2008, he earned his Master of Fine Arts from NSCAD University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and was thereafter awarded the Joseph Plaskett Foundation Award to travel and research painting in Europe. Through this research he discovered a deep interest with the painting craft of the Baroque era, which he then sought to integrate into his abstract painting practice. Subsequently, he undertook extensive research into producing his own oil paint and gesso from pure pigments, including course instruction at the Kremers Pigment factory in Aichstetten, Germany. He has exhibited across Canada and Europe and is the recipient of numerous residencies and grants, such as the William and Isabel Pope Painting Residency at NSCAD University and multiple Research and Creation Grants from the Canada Council for the Arts.
Artist website: https://www.nampainting.com/about
Photo courtesy of Dale Grant
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and Alberta Foundation for the Arts.
Featured Artwork in the poster: Nam Duc Nguyen, Untitled (detail), oil on canvas, 45×50 cm, 2021, photo courtesy of the artist.