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Portrait of an artist
Mount Royal’s collection of fine art includes two portraits by renowned Canadian artist John Wycliffe Lowes Forster, who painted many of Canada’s most famous political, religious and historical figures in his time.
The Mount Royal portraits are circa 1930 and feature the school’s founding leaders:
- Rev. Dr. George W. Kerby, the first principal
- William Henry Cushing, the first chairman of the Board of Governors
It is unknown who commissioned the two large oil paintings, but Forster often did portraits of church leaders and prominent figures in education.
Born in Norval, ON, in 1850, Forster achieved international recognition as a portrait artist, painting more than 500 portraits and historical tableaux in his lifetime.
He began studying portraiture in 1869 and went on to study painting in Paris for several years before returning to Toronto to establish a permanent studio in 1883.
Over the next few decades, he exhibited locally and internationally, as well as writing extensively on art, history, ethics and education.
In his autobiography, Under the Studio Light: Leaves froma Portrait Painter's Sketch Book, he discussed the subjects of his paintings, whom he categorized by profession and affectionately called “big-wigs.”
There were the “public men,” including Governor General Earl Grey and Prime Ministers Sir J.S. Thompson, Sir Wilfrid Laurier and the Right Hon. William Lyon Mackenzie King.
There were also “eminent collegians,” such as Rev. Dr. Egerton Ryerson, founder of the Canadian school system, and “men of affairs” like department store mogul Timothy Eaton. In 1920, Forster was also one of the first foreign artists granted the privilege of painting the Emperor and Empress of Japan.
Much of Forster’s work is now housed at the National Gallery of Canada.
His portraits of Dr. Kerby and W.H. Cushing both hang at the entrance to Kerby Hall in the main campus building.
This page regularly showcases the collections of the Mount Royal University Archives. Thanks to the Director of the Archives, Patricia Roome, PhD, and her staff for their assistance in selecting artifacts and conducting research.