Undaunted Women Artists

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Laura Muntz Lyall, "Mother and Child," circa 1895

oil on wood panel (Art Gallery of Alberta Collection, gift of the Ernest E. Poole Foundation, 1975)

Twenty-five years ago historian and curator Maria Tippett published By a Lady: Celebrating Three Centuries of Art by Canadian Women. At the time, there was criticism of the book’s title. The problem was with the phrase “by a lady” which some considered demeaning. Given the contents between the covers and what Tippett achieved with this broad 1992 survey, the title seemed to me a pretty minor matter. You could argue over the selection of artists featured (if you knew anything about the topic) or the book’s attention to gender and issues of identity, but not its timely arrival.

Taking another stab at the topic is Undaunted: Canadian Women Painters of the 19th Century. An exhibition rather than a book, this show, on view at the Art Gallery of Alberta in Edmonton until March 25, reveals there’s still much recovery work to be done. Even with its smaller roster of artists, there were surprises. Some on display, of course, are well documented, such as Emily Carr and Francis Anne Hopkins, who painted scenes of the fur trade, as well as successful portraitist Florence Carlyle and wildflower artist (and much more) Annora Brown. But others aroused questions. How many works by the artist still survive today? And what do we really know about their practice? The Irish-born Sara Mary Blake comes to mind here with her folk art like depictions of early ranching in southern Alberta.

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Emily Carr. "Strait of Juan de Fuca," circa 1936

oil on paper and canvas (Art Gallery of Alberta Collection, gift of Mrs. Max Stern, Dominion Gallery, Montreal, 1973)

The exhibition is displayed in three adjoining rooms. Examples of 19th century art are shown, followed by the early 20th century works from Edmonton and elsewhere (i.e. Emily Carr). The show ends with more modernist art from the women of the Beaver Hall Group and others, such as Kathleen Daly and the irrepressible Ella May Walker. Of the three areas, the early contributions of Edmonton-based artists are perhaps the weakest or, maybe, just the most conservative.

Sophie Pemberton, "John O’Dreams," 1901

Mary Hiester Reid, "Study of a Head," circa 1874-1921

Nonetheless, the exhibition labels are well researched and add to our knowledge of the contributions these women made as artists, mentors, community builders and a long list of other activities. As the title suggests, they were indeed undaunted (well, you hope it was actually that way), going about their business and finding ways to make art.