David Guerry Partridge

Saskatchewan NAC Auction House Biography and Notes

David Partridge was a Canadian artist and sculptor. He was born in Akron, Ohio, but grew up in England, moving to Canada when he was sixteen years old. In 1941, he joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and served as a flying instructor until the end of World War II. After the war he studied under various teachers in Canada, then in 1950 went to the Slade School of Fine Art (London) for a year. Partridge began his career as a painter and printmaker, and worked as a teacher from 1946 to 1962. At one point in his career, Partridge was best known for creating "naillies," works (sometimes very large) made of nails of varying sizes driven into plywood at different heights to form representational or abstract sculptures. His work has been exhibited in many galleries in Canada and internationally. His work can be found in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada and the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, as well as numerous corporate collections. Some of his commissioned works can be seen at the Toronto City Hall and Canada's Capital Congress Centre. In 2002, he was made a member of the Order of Canada. David Partridge died in Toronto in 2006.