For the Week of Monday, March 7, 2022
On March 7, 1903, Maud Lewis was born to Agnes and John Dowley in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. She went on to become one of the most celebrated folk artists of her generation, using vibrant colours and simple brush strokes to create lively and appealing depictions of flora and fauna, especially dogs, horses, cows, cats, as well as scenes of daily life in rural Nova Scotia.
After the death of her parents, she lived with an aunt in Digby before marrying Everett Lewis in 1938 and moving to nearby Marshalltown. There, she painted lively, colourful scenes on cardstock, which she sold to tourists, posting a sign on their house that advertised “paintings for sale” to passersby. She was born with physical disabilities that caused her considerable pain, particularly in her hands, and limited her mobility. Still, she transformed the home she shared with Everett, with its single room on the ground floor and sleeping loft above, into a showcase for her work, its doors, windows, and interior surfaces painted in her signature, cheery style. It was later preserved and displayed at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.
Like other folk artists, she taught herself how to paint, developing a unique approach to depicting the world around her that departed from the rules of perspective and proportion. There is a long history of folk art in Canada, which encompasses a wide range of cultural traditions, regional influences, and innovations by individual painters, sculptors, carvers, storytellers, singers, and other artists. By the mid-20th century, the folk movement had gained greater visibility in Nova Scotia, thanks in part to folklorists and collectors, like Helen Creighton. Here, as elsewhere, folk culture became a vehicle for advancing romantic visions of rural life, as the antithesis to industrialism and urbanism, and as a possible cultural basis for a renewed sense of Canadian nationalism. However, while Creighton attracted funding from prominent institutions, Lewis’ audience in her lifetime were principally locals, tourists, and summer residents.
Maud Lewis, whose paintings had been displayed at a local gallery, was becoming well-known by the time she appeared on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation television program Telescope in 1965, and then after her death, in a National Film Board documentary in 1976. These programs thrust her onto the national stage, greatly increasing demand for her art. In one interview, she modestly diminished her artistic contributions: “I put the same thing, I never change. Same colours and same designs.” She asked only to be paid in advance. However, declining health had slowed the pace of production in the years before her death in 1970.
Helen Creighton is a designated national historic person. The Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC) advises the Government of Canada on the commemoration of National Historic Persons—individuals who have made unique and enduring contributions to the history of Canada.
The National Program of Historical Commemoration relies on the participation of Canadians in the identification of places, events and persons of national historic significance. Any member of the public can nominate a topic for consideration by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada. Learn how to participate in this process.