Victoria D. and Kaitlyn D.

Emily Carr

Victoria D. and Kaitlyn D.
Yorkton Community Heritage Fair
Yorkton, SK

Emily Carr was born December 13, 1871. From a young age, her father encouraged her talent and she took drawing lessons from Emily Woods. Sadly, when Emily was only 14, her mother passed away from tuberculosis in 1886 and her father passed away two years later in 1888. Leaving Emily in the hands of her older sister and lawyer James Lawson. At the age of 18 she persuaded her guardian’s to let her attend art school in San Fransisco, she studied there from 1890-1892. She went on from there and travelled to Europe to continue her studies, until she became ill in 1910. After being in the hospital for three months, she went travelling to Sweden with her sister Alice. Later that spring she returned to France to finish her studies. She returned to Victoria B.C in 1911, after studying in England and France for 14 months, she began to paint in the style of “New Art”. New Art is a contemporary art that pushes boundaries. Her aren’t wasn’t recognized so she didn’t sell much, because of this she turned her house into a boarding school called “The House of All Sorts” she later published a book about it. In 1927 her art caught the eye of Arthur Lismer who was a member of the Group of Seven, after meeting with him she became an honourary member of the Group of Seven. Due to failing health at the age of 70, Emily was told by her doctor to slow down, this is when she began to write and publish books. Emily Carr passed away on March 2, 1945 at the age of 73, she is buried in the Carr family plot in Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria B.C.  

What sources and evidence did you consult for your project? What different perspectives did they provide on your topic?

We used sources found at the Royal B.C Museum, Canada.ca, Wikipedia, National Gallery of Canada, The Art Institute and Biography.ca. We found a lot of information on her family, lots of pictures of her paintings and the bools she published. 

What is the historical significance of your topic?

We think her art impacted other artists. It also brought to light the culture of the First Nations peoples who she was inspired by. 

Why did you choose this topic? 

We chose this topic because one of us wanted to do an artist and the other wanted to do an author, so we did some research and found Emily was both.