Maud Lewis<\/span><\/h1><\/h1><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>A crowd-pleasing show \u2013 complete with gaily painted cats, flowers and oxen \u2013 wends its way to Calgary.<\/span><\/h1>\nPublication:\u00a0Galleries West<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nPublished: June 11, 2021<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nAuthor:\u00a0Paul Gessell<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n![\"Maud](\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27640%27%20height%3D%27457%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20640%20457%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27640%27%20height%3D%27457%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\")
Maud Lewis, \u201cEerie Train,\u201d circa 1949 \/1950 oil on beaverboard, 12\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.23)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe McMichael Canadian Art Collection, a major gallery near Toronto, normally doesn\u2019t show paintings of adorable cats, bright flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes. Instead, it prefers exhibitions of the Group of Seven, Tom Thomson and other favourites of the Canadian establishment.<\/p>\n
So, why did a 2019 show of na\u00eff paintings by Nova Scotia folk artist Maud Lewis become, in the words of McMichael chief curator Sarah Milroy, \u201cone of the most successful exhibitions\u201d the gallery has ever had?<\/p>\n
The popularity of\u00a0Maud Lewis<\/em>, which opens June 19 at the Glenbow in Calgary, was demonstrated by large, summer-long crowds at the McMichael and brisk gift shop souvenir sales. And visitors engaged with the paintings, stopping in front of each work and slowly drinking in details of the composition and colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nMaud Lewis, \u201cLighthouse and Ferry at Cape Forchu, Yarmouth County,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 13\u201d x 13\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.34)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nWhy do people love these paintings so much? An answer comes from Shannon Parker,\u00a0a curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia\u00a0who manages the Halifax institution\u2019s collection of some 40 Lewis paintings, assorted artifacts and even the artist\u2019s tiny, gaily painted house, relocated right into the gallery.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many people try to explain what draws them to her artwork,\u201d says Parker. \u201cAnd they just say: \u2018She makes me smile.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis, \u201cBlack and White Cat,\u201d 1962 oil on board, 12\u201d \u00d7 9\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.41)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\nAfter a year of COVID-19, including the third wave that hit Alberta so ferociously this spring, Calgarians undoubtedly will welcome a chance to smile\u00a0when the Glenbow reopens June 19. (Admission will be free until June 26 to welcome people back.)<\/p>\n
The show, which includes 140 paintings gussied up in eye-catching primary colours with cheerful scenery featuring winter sleigh rides and bucolic pastures, continues until Aug. 29.<\/p>\n
Both Milroy and Parker say part of the allure is the backstory \u2013 many people feel a desire to make a connection to Lewis, whose sad, hard life has been publicized in books and film.<\/p>\n
This phenomenon is not limited to Lewis. Think of Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh. We are drawn to his work even more upon learning of his extreme poverty and mental illness.<\/p>\n
\n![\"Maud](\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27640%27%20height%3D%27470%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20640%20470%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27640%27%20height%3D%27470%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\")
Maud Lewis, \u201cGirl by Lake,\u201d 1940s oil on board, 9\u201d \u00d7 12\u201d (private collection, L2019.90.17)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\nLewis was born in 1903 in Yarmouth, N.S. As a child, she developed juvenile arthritis, which left her body and hands deformed. In 1938,\u00a0she married Everett Lewis,\u00a0<\/strong>a fish peddler of ill repute in\u00a0Marshalltown, N.S.,\u00a0and moved into his 12-foot by 12-foot house.\u00a0The 2017 feature film\u00a0Maudie<\/em>\u00a0presents a romanticized version of a difficult marriage.<\/p>\nFrom that house, Lewis created paintings and sold them to passersby for a few dollars each. Everett seized much of the money and buried it in the backyard. Life was hard for Lewis. Her nostalgic paintings surely reflect her desire to escape the bleak present for happier, idealized days.<\/p>\n
News stories about Lewis during the 1960s made her famous, but she was not rich when she died in 1970. These days, her paintings sell for as much as $45,000.<\/p>\nMaud Lewis, \u201cTwo Oxen in Spring,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 12.5\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.40)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nMilroy, a former editor of\u00a0Canadian Art\u00a0magazine and the curator of the travelling exhibition, calls the paintings a \u201cguilty pleasure.\u201d The pleasure comes from \u201cthe riot of her colour and the eccentricity of her creations.\u201d The guilt, because people like Lewis who produce made-to-order art are generally perceived by the art world, in Milroy\u2019s words, as \u201cinauthentic\u201d artists.<\/p>\n
One can only wonder what Lewis would think about her current fame and prices, or how her art, whether authentic or not, can draw crowds and ring up gift shop sales of colouring books, pandemic face masks and other paraphernalia decorated with child-like images of cats, flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes.\u00a0\u25a0<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0at the Glenbow in Calgary from June 19 to Aug. 29, 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
A crowd-pleasing show \u2013 complete with gaily painted cats, flowers and oxen \u2013 wends its way to Calgary.<\/span><\/h1>\nPublication:\u00a0Galleries West<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nPublished: June 11, 2021<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nAuthor:\u00a0Paul Gessell<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nMaud Lewis, \u201cEerie Train,\u201d circa 1949 \/1950 oil on beaverboard, 12\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.23)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe McMichael Canadian Art Collection, a major gallery near Toronto, normally doesn\u2019t show paintings of adorable cats, bright flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes. Instead, it prefers exhibitions of the Group of Seven, Tom Thomson and other favourites of the Canadian establishment.<\/p>\n
So, why did a 2019 show of na\u00eff paintings by Nova Scotia folk artist Maud Lewis become, in the words of McMichael chief curator Sarah Milroy, \u201cone of the most successful exhibitions\u201d the gallery has ever had?<\/p>\n
The popularity of\u00a0Maud Lewis<\/em>, which opens June 19 at the Glenbow in Calgary, was demonstrated by large, summer-long crowds at the McMichael and brisk gift shop souvenir sales. And visitors engaged with the paintings, stopping in front of each work and slowly drinking in details of the composition and colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nMaud Lewis, \u201cLighthouse and Ferry at Cape Forchu, Yarmouth County,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 13\u201d x 13\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.34)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nWhy do people love these paintings so much? An answer comes from Shannon Parker,\u00a0a curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia\u00a0who manages the Halifax institution\u2019s collection of some 40 Lewis paintings, assorted artifacts and even the artist\u2019s tiny, gaily painted house, relocated right into the gallery.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many people try to explain what draws them to her artwork,\u201d says Parker. \u201cAnd they just say: \u2018She makes me smile.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis, \u201cBlack and White Cat,\u201d 1962 oil on board, 12\u201d \u00d7 9\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.41)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\nAfter a year of COVID-19, including the third wave that hit Alberta so ferociously this spring, Calgarians undoubtedly will welcome a chance to smile\u00a0when the Glenbow reopens June 19. (Admission will be free until June 26 to welcome people back.)<\/p>\n
The show, which includes 140 paintings gussied up in eye-catching primary colours with cheerful scenery featuring winter sleigh rides and bucolic pastures, continues until Aug. 29.<\/p>\n
Both Milroy and Parker say part of the allure is the backstory \u2013 many people feel a desire to make a connection to Lewis, whose sad, hard life has been publicized in books and film.<\/p>\n
This phenomenon is not limited to Lewis. Think of Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh. We are drawn to his work even more upon learning of his extreme poverty and mental illness.<\/p>\n
\nMaud Lewis, \u201cGirl by Lake,\u201d 1940s oil on board, 9\u201d \u00d7 12\u201d (private collection, L2019.90.17)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\nLewis was born in 1903 in Yarmouth, N.S. As a child, she developed juvenile arthritis, which left her body and hands deformed. In 1938,\u00a0she married Everett Lewis,\u00a0<\/strong>a fish peddler of ill repute in\u00a0Marshalltown, N.S.,\u00a0and moved into his 12-foot by 12-foot house.\u00a0The 2017 feature film\u00a0Maudie<\/em>\u00a0presents a romanticized version of a difficult marriage.<\/p>\nFrom that house, Lewis created paintings and sold them to passersby for a few dollars each. Everett seized much of the money and buried it in the backyard. Life was hard for Lewis. Her nostalgic paintings surely reflect her desire to escape the bleak present for happier, idealized days.<\/p>\n
News stories about Lewis during the 1960s made her famous, but she was not rich when she died in 1970. These days, her paintings sell for as much as $45,000.<\/p>\nMaud Lewis, \u201cTwo Oxen in Spring,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 12.5\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.40)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nMilroy, a former editor of\u00a0Canadian Art\u00a0magazine and the curator of the travelling exhibition, calls the paintings a \u201cguilty pleasure.\u201d The pleasure comes from \u201cthe riot of her colour and the eccentricity of her creations.\u201d The guilt, because people like Lewis who produce made-to-order art are generally perceived by the art world, in Milroy\u2019s words, as \u201cinauthentic\u201d artists.<\/p>\n
One can only wonder what Lewis would think about her current fame and prices, or how her art, whether authentic or not, can draw crowds and ring up gift shop sales of colouring books, pandemic face masks and other paraphernalia decorated with child-like images of cats, flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes.\u00a0\u25a0<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0at the Glenbow in Calgary from June 19 to Aug. 29, 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Published: June 11, 2021<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nAuthor:\u00a0Paul Gessell<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\nMaud Lewis, \u201cEerie Train,\u201d circa 1949 \/1950 oil on beaverboard, 12\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.23)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThe McMichael Canadian Art Collection, a major gallery near Toronto, normally doesn\u2019t show paintings of adorable cats, bright flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes. Instead, it prefers exhibitions of the Group of Seven, Tom Thomson and other favourites of the Canadian establishment.<\/p>\n
So, why did a 2019 show of na\u00eff paintings by Nova Scotia folk artist Maud Lewis become, in the words of McMichael chief curator Sarah Milroy, \u201cone of the most successful exhibitions\u201d the gallery has ever had?<\/p>\n
The popularity of\u00a0Maud Lewis<\/em>, which opens June 19 at the Glenbow in Calgary, was demonstrated by large, summer-long crowds at the McMichael and brisk gift shop souvenir sales. And visitors engaged with the paintings, stopping in front of each work and slowly drinking in details of the composition and colours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nMaud Lewis, \u201cLighthouse and Ferry at Cape Forchu, Yarmouth County,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 13\u201d x 13\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.34)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\nWhy do people love these paintings so much? An answer comes from Shannon Parker,\u00a0a curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia\u00a0who manages the Halifax institution\u2019s collection of some 40 Lewis paintings, assorted artifacts and even the artist\u2019s tiny, gaily painted house, relocated right into the gallery.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo many people try to explain what draws them to her artwork,\u201d says Parker. \u201cAnd they just say: \u2018She makes me smile.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis, \u201cBlack and White Cat,\u201d 1962 oil on board, 12\u201d \u00d7 9\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.41)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\nAfter a year of COVID-19, including the third wave that hit Alberta so ferociously this spring, Calgarians undoubtedly will welcome a chance to smile\u00a0when the Glenbow reopens June 19. (Admission will be free until June 26 to welcome people back.)<\/p>\n
The show, which includes 140 paintings gussied up in eye-catching primary colours with cheerful scenery featuring winter sleigh rides and bucolic pastures, continues until Aug. 29.<\/p>\n
Both Milroy and Parker say part of the allure is the backstory \u2013 many people feel a desire to make a connection to Lewis, whose sad, hard life has been publicized in books and film.<\/p>\n
This phenomenon is not limited to Lewis. Think of Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh. We are drawn to his work even more upon learning of his extreme poverty and mental illness.<\/p>\n
\nMaud Lewis, \u201cGirl by Lake,\u201d 1940s oil on board, 9\u201d \u00d7 12\u201d (private collection, L2019.90.17)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\nLewis was born in 1903 in Yarmouth, N.S. As a child, she developed juvenile arthritis, which left her body and hands deformed. In 1938,\u00a0she married Everett Lewis,\u00a0<\/strong>a fish peddler of ill repute in\u00a0Marshalltown, N.S.,\u00a0and moved into his 12-foot by 12-foot house.\u00a0The 2017 feature film\u00a0Maudie<\/em>\u00a0presents a romanticized version of a difficult marriage.<\/p>\nFrom that house, Lewis created paintings and sold them to passersby for a few dollars each. Everett seized much of the money and buried it in the backyard. Life was hard for Lewis. Her nostalgic paintings surely reflect her desire to escape the bleak present for happier, idealized days.<\/p>\n
News stories about Lewis during the 1960s made her famous, but she was not rich when she died in 1970. These days, her paintings sell for as much as $45,000.<\/p>\nMaud Lewis, \u201cTwo Oxen in Spring,\u201d 1960s oil on board, 12.5\u201d x 12\u201d (collection of CFFI Ventures Inc. as collected by John Risley, L2019.84.40)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nMilroy, a former editor of\u00a0Canadian Art\u00a0magazine and the curator of the travelling exhibition, calls the paintings a \u201cguilty pleasure.\u201d The pleasure comes from \u201cthe riot of her colour and the eccentricity of her creations.\u201d The guilt, because people like Lewis who produce made-to-order art are generally perceived by the art world, in Milroy\u2019s words, as \u201cinauthentic\u201d artists.<\/p>\n
One can only wonder what Lewis would think about her current fame and prices, or how her art, whether authentic or not, can draw crowds and ring up gift shop sales of colouring books, pandemic face masks and other paraphernalia decorated with child-like images of cats, flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes.\u00a0\u25a0<\/p>\n
Maud Lewis<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0at the Glenbow in Calgary from June 19 to Aug. 29, 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
![\"Maud](\"https:\/\/www.gallerieswest.ca\/downloads\/23575\/download\/L2019.84.23.jpg?cb=d1593fdc3e481466a5aeb4a1ee2c89d0&w=640\")
The McMichael Canadian Art Collection, a major gallery near Toronto, normally doesn\u2019t show paintings of adorable cats, bright flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes. Instead, it prefers exhibitions of the Group of Seven, Tom Thomson and other favourites of the Canadian establishment.<\/p>\n
So, why did a 2019 show of na\u00eff paintings by Nova Scotia folk artist Maud Lewis become, in the words of McMichael chief curator Sarah Milroy, \u201cone of the most successful exhibitions\u201d the gallery has ever had?<\/p>\n
The popularity of\u00a0Maud Lewis<\/em>, which opens June 19 at the Glenbow in Calgary, was demonstrated by large, summer-long crowds at the McMichael and brisk gift shop souvenir sales. And visitors engaged with the paintings, stopping in front of each work and slowly drinking in details of the composition and colours.<\/p>\n Why do people love these paintings so much? An answer comes from Shannon Parker,\u00a0a curator at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia\u00a0who manages the Halifax institution\u2019s collection of some 40 Lewis paintings, assorted artifacts and even the artist\u2019s tiny, gaily painted house, relocated right into the gallery.<\/p>\n \u201cSo many people try to explain what draws them to her artwork,\u201d says Parker. \u201cAnd they just say: \u2018She makes me smile.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n After a year of COVID-19, including the third wave that hit Alberta so ferociously this spring, Calgarians undoubtedly will welcome a chance to smile\u00a0when the Glenbow reopens June 19. (Admission will be free until June 26 to welcome people back.)<\/p>\n The show, which includes 140 paintings gussied up in eye-catching primary colours with cheerful scenery featuring winter sleigh rides and bucolic pastures, continues until Aug. 29.<\/p>\n Both Milroy and Parker say part of the allure is the backstory \u2013 many people feel a desire to make a connection to Lewis, whose sad, hard life has been publicized in books and film.<\/p>\n This phenomenon is not limited to Lewis. Think of Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh. We are drawn to his work even more upon learning of his extreme poverty and mental illness.<\/p>\n Lewis was born in 1903 in Yarmouth, N.S. As a child, she developed juvenile arthritis, which left her body and hands deformed. In 1938,\u00a0she married Everett Lewis,\u00a0<\/strong>a fish peddler of ill repute in\u00a0Marshalltown, N.S.,\u00a0and moved into his 12-foot by 12-foot house.\u00a0The 2017 feature film\u00a0Maudie<\/em>\u00a0presents a romanticized version of a difficult marriage.<\/p>\n From that house, Lewis created paintings and sold them to passersby for a few dollars each. Everett seized much of the money and buried it in the backyard. Life was hard for Lewis. Her nostalgic paintings surely reflect her desire to escape the bleak present for happier, idealized days.<\/p>\n News stories about Lewis during the 1960s made her famous, but she was not rich when she died in 1970. These days, her paintings sell for as much as $45,000.<\/p>\n Milroy, a former editor of\u00a0Canadian Art\u00a0magazine and the curator of the travelling exhibition, calls the paintings a \u201cguilty pleasure.\u201d The pleasure comes from \u201cthe riot of her colour and the eccentricity of her creations.\u201d The guilt, because people like Lewis who produce made-to-order art are generally perceived by the art world, in Milroy\u2019s words, as \u201cinauthentic\u201d artists.<\/p>\n One can only wonder what Lewis would think about her current fame and prices, or how her art, whether authentic or not, can draw crowds and ring up gift shop sales of colouring books, pandemic face masks and other paraphernalia decorated with child-like images of cats, flowers and oxen with impossibly long eyelashes.\u00a0\u25a0<\/p>\n Maud Lewis<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0at the Glenbow in Calgary from June 19 to Aug. 29, 2021.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
![\"Maud](\"https:\/\/www.gallerieswest.ca\/downloads\/23576\/download\/L2019.84.34.jpg?cb=6bfef2bd0cd4f774d6f01df84441e878&w=640\")
![\"Maud](\"https:\/\/www.gallerieswest.ca\/downloads\/23578\/download\/L2019.84.41.jpg?cb=9705acf19c5f79651dcfbe15302bd326&w=640\")
![\"Maud](\"https:\/\/www.gallerieswest.ca\/downloads\/23579\/download\/L2019.90.17.jpg?cb=f0610207c720f86ad1612c45ed835986&w=640\")
![\"Maud](\"https:\/\/www.gallerieswest.ca\/downloads\/23577\/download\/L2019.84.40.jpg?cb=4ec5b3028079992508e3a7d2d7dca34a&w=640\")