Iain Baxter& is a prominent Canadian conceptual artist. Born in Middlesborough, England, he arrived in Canada with his parents in 1937. He earned a BSc in Zoology and Master of Education at the University of Idaho, and an MFA at Washington State University in 1964. He studied art and aesthetics in Japan, where he was based out of Kyoto University. He lived in Calgary before settling in Vancouver in 1964 where he taught at U.B.C.
In 1965 he created the trade mark name N, E. Thing Co., for a wide variety of innovations of inflated landscapes, vinyl-bagged air, water, wood, earth and photographs of various aspects of man’s quest to produce synthetics or ability to package anything for sale, including natural resources.
He legally changed his name from Baxter to Baxter& in 2005 to emphasize the importance of collaboration and audience participation to his work. He is an environmental activist and often uses environmental issues as central themes in his work. His art can be found in permanent collections including the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Museum of Modern Art, the Los Angeles County Museum, the Detroit Institute of Art, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and the Vancouver Art Gallery, among other internationally recognized institutions.
Sources: "A Dictionary of Canadian Artists, Volume I: A-F", compiled by Colin S. MacDonald, Canadian Paperbacks Publishing Ltd, Ottawa, 1977
