Ken Cochrane was raised in Glasgow, Scotland. After finishing high school in 1953 he immigrated to Canada where he was employed as a junior fur trader under the guardianship of the Hudson's Bay Company. He was posted to Fort MacPherson, North West Territories - a small Louchioux native hamlet located on the Peel River in Canada's western arctic. There, his duties included grading and shipping small animal pelts, daily retailing at the outpost store and hauling wood, ice and fish by dog team.
Ken's most rewarding experience, however, was his interaction with his newly acquired native friends. Many of which he keeps in contact with to this day. His early exposure to the awe-inspiring Canadian North, the village inhabitant's way of life and the rigors of learning how to survive the harsh Arctic winters was an educational experience Ken will never forget. He often refers to this timeframe as ''the most wonderful year of my life.''
Over the next eleven years, Ken served with the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force, where he once again accumulated more ''Arctic time'' in Resolute Bay, North West Territories. The following thirty-four years saw Ken in the business world, owning and operating a salmon fishing lodge, a retail sporting goods store as well as being an assistant big-game guide in the Canadian Rockies.
Having spent a good portion of his life in Western Canada, Ken feels deeply for what he calls ''gems of the West,'' by which he means its mountain and marine landscapes, wildlife and ranching lifestyle. He took to expressing this passion by painting the wonders of his experiences of his life's travels. Having such a worldly experience, Ken's artistic genre is multi-faceted. The knowledge he has acquired through his life's experience is inherent in his artwork.
To date, Ken has an award-winning portfolio of artwork encompasing ranch/rodeo, wildlife, marine/landscape and miscellaneous covers. He is a hard-working member of the Federation of Canadian Artists who currently resides in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Over the next eleven years, Ken served with the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force, where he once again accumulated more ''Arctic time'' in Resolute Bay, North West Territories. The following thirty-four years saw Ken in the business world, owning and operating a salmon fishing lodge, a retail sporting goods store as well as being an assistant big-game guide in the Canadian Rockies.
Having spent a good portion of his life in Western Canada, Ken feels deeply for what he calls ''gems of the West,'' by which he means its mountain and marine landscapes, wildlife and ranching lifestyle. He took to expressing this passion by painting the wonders of his experiences of his life's travels. Having such a worldly experience, Ken's artistic genre is multi-faceted. The knowledge he has acquired through his life's experience is inherent in his artwork.
To date, Ken has an award-winning portfolio of artwork encompasing ranch/rodeo, wildlife, marine/landscape and miscellaneous covers. He is a hard-working member of the Federation of Canadian Artists who currently resides in Kelowna, British Columbia.
Ken Cochrane l Website www.cochranearts.com l Tel: 250-860-9128