Artist.
Born on 13 May 1958 to Anna Piers (1934-2018) and Andy Folkerts (1930-1994), he was an artist who worked at home out of his third-floor gravel-road studio in the East Kildonan neighbourhood of Winnipeg. Known for his Christian-themed paintings, he was devoted to creating art that invited viewers to reflect upon, and sometimes wrestle with, allusive, suggestion-rich, and deeply relevant images.
He was a member and President (1998-2000) of the Manitoba Society of Artists. On several occasions his paintings were awarded first place in the MSA’s annual juried exhibition and show—most recently, before his death, in 2006. His work was displayed in numerous group and solo exhibitions in North America and, in 2002, he was an award winner in Imago’s National Visual Art competition at Toronto. In January 2009, in an Exchange District gallery in Winnipeg, more than 2,000 people attended a four-day retrospective of his work, called “Unfinished Business,” organized by his friends. He was also a singer with the Winnipeg vocal octet, Celbr8.
After his cancer diagnosis, his daughter-in-law Dana maintained an online blog, “A Gravel Road Journey,” to document the progress of his illness. He once said that “gravel roads take us off life’s busy highways and force us to slow down. When we slow down we have time—time to notice the things around us; the things that matter the most; life and breath, the flowers and the trees. Gravel roads allow us to taste the dust of our travel and give us more time to breathe.”
He died on 30 May 2009 and was buried in the Sunnyside Cemetery, survived by his wife Arlis and their four children.
“Visual artist Gerald Folkerts dies at age 51,” Winnipeg Free Press, 31 May 2009.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 3 June 2009.
“Homage to an Artist: Gerald Folkerts (1958-2009), Christian Week, 19 June, 2009.
“Gerald Frederick Folkerts,” Tielman Family Tree, Ancestry.
“Artist—Gerald Folkerts,” Imago Arts, Vol. 11-1.
This page was prepared by Lois Braun.
Page revised: 14 February 2025
Memorable Manitobans
This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations.
Search the collection by word or phrase, name, place, occupation or other text:
Custom SearchBrowse surnames beginning with:
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | ZBrowse deaths occurring in:
1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025
Send corrections and additions to this page
to the Memorable Manitobans Administrator at biographies@mhs.mb.caCriteria for Memorable Manitobans | Suggest a Memorable Manitoban | Firsts | Acknowledgements
Help us keep
history alive!
