Arnold Saper died May 27, 2019, four days before his 86th birthday, of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis. Although well-known in Winnipeg, the U.S. and parts of Europe, Arnold was less known in most parts of Canada. Arnold influenced many artists through his work and teaching in drawing and printmaking as a senior professor at the University of Manitoba. Arnold was instrumental in teaching a great many known Canadian artists.

Arnold was uninterested in trends, but he cared deeply about the emotional and psychological aspects of the human condition. His portraits especially show the power of his work. Born in Winnipeg in 1933 and growing up in the famed North End, Arnold was educated at St. Johns High school and the University of Manitoba. After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (U of M) in 1961 and Education Certificate 1963, he taught in many rural and urban schools. He won a Canada Council award in 1963 to study with Mauricio Lasansky at the State University of Iowa in Iowa City. Arnold was a teaching assistant to prof. Orville Tucker and prof. Lasansky. He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the State University of Iowa in 1966.

Arnold returned to Canada with his family and accepted a position at the School of Art in 1966 at the University of Manitoba where he taught for the remainder of his career. He was very prolific as an artist throughout his long career, stopping only when his illness was in terminal stages.