William Perehudoff’s upbringing in a small prairie farming community shaped his unique approach to color. Working alongside post-war icons such as Kenneth Noland, Donald Judd, and Jules Olitski, Perehudoff is a key yet under-historicized figure in the development of color field painting - maintaining a dedication to the Saskatchewan farmlands that so-deeply informed his practice. In 1947, Perehudoff came into contact with several Canadian artists working towards abstraction, namely Lawren Harris. By the 1950s, Perehudoff began travelling to Europe, studying under Amédée Ozenfant and marrying fellow Canadian artist Dorothy Knowles. The couple settled in Saskatchewan and were instrumental in developing an international presence for Canadian abstraction through the Emma Lake Workshops. William Perehudoff and Jack Bush pioneered Canadian Color Field painting; Perehudoff continued to receive several honors in the 1990s and 2000s. He was given the Canada 125 Commemorative Medal in 1993, the Member of the Order of Canada in 1999, an honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Regina in 2003, and the Saskatchewan Centennial Medal in 2005. In 2010, a large exhibition of his work, The Optimism of Colour, was organized by Mendel Art Gallery and traveled to several institutions throughout Canada. Its catalogue, in French and English, included essays by Karen Wilkin, Roald Nasgaard, and Robert Christie. Perehudoff continued to farm and paint until close to the time of his passing in 2013. Perehudoff's works are held in the public collections of the National Gallery of Canada, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Montréal Museum of Fine Arts, Portland Art Museum, Art Gallery of Alberta, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, the Glenbow-Alberta Institute, and the Canada Council Art Bank, among others. Rukaj Gallery has represented the Perehudoff Estate for several decades; the gallery is steward to the legacy of Perehudoff and upholds a commitment to advancing the enduring cultural significance of his art.