Alexandra Luke

Alexandra Luke
Born Margaret Alexandra Luke
14 May 1901
Montreal, Quebec
Died 1 June 1967
Oshawa, Ontario
Nationality Canadian
Known for painter
Movement Abstract expressionism.

Alexandra Luke (14 May 1901 - 1 June 1967), born Margaret Alexandra Luke in Montreal, Quebec, was a Canadian abstract artist who belonged to the Painters Eleven.

Early life

Alexandra Luke was born into an upper-class family in Westmount, Montreal. She was born a twin to parents Jesse Herbert Ritson and Emma Russell Long.[1] After Alexandra had finished high school in 1914, the family settled in Oshawa, Ontario. Soon after, both Alexandra and twin sister Isobel began nurse's training at Columbia Hospital for Women in Washington, D.C.

After her graduation, Alexandra returned to Oshawa and married Marcus Everett Smith. Their marriage was short lived as Smith died suddenly four months into their marriage, but Alexandra gave birth to his son, Richard, in 1926.[2] Soon after, she was courted by Clarence Ewert McLaughlin, grandson of Robert McLaughlin, the founder of the McLaughlin Carriage Company. The couple married in 1928 and had their first child, Mary, in 1930.

Work and Painters Eleven

It wasn't until her late 20s that Alexandra began to create art. Inspired by two local artists, Dorothy Van Luven and Dorothy Henderson,[1] she began to paint and organize arts classes around the city. She used her wealth to help build the arts community in Oshawa, and became a member of several boards and societies including the Oshawa Women's Lyceum Club and Oshawa Historical Society.

Alexandra painted landscapes in a large, third floor studio in her husband's home and soon discovered abstract art after visiting modernist exhibitions in Toronto and Ottawa. Desperate to be seen as more than a hobbyist painter, in 1944 she sought out a portfolio review by landscape artist Caven Atkins. Atkins gave her a blunt review and told her that her Group of Seven-inspired style was not viable.[1] This pushed her to further explore abstraction and receive formal art training at Banff School of Fine Arts (renamed Banff Centre) in 1945 then the Hans Hofmann School of Art in 1947. From Hofmann's teachings, Luke began to understand how create energy in her paintings with colour, texture and usage of white space.

She began to exhibit her work in the early 1950s at different venues, including the Canadian Group of Painters and the Picture Loan Society.[2] In 1952 she organized the first Canadian Abstract Exhibition, where she met the members that would form the Painters Eleven. With this group, she was inspired to create more paintings and she was able to showcase her works in a wide range of venues in the United States and Canada. Luke championed for the promotion of Canadian abstract art and had a "strengthening, inspirational"[2] role in the group.

Later life

Alexandra continued to paint and support abstract arts up until her death by ovarian cancer on 1 June 1967. She had created a sizable volume of work and participated in over 80 group exhibitions and solo shows. She had also been accepted into prestigious arts societies including the Canadian Group of Painters in 1959 and the Ontario Society of Artists in 1960.[1]

Shortly before her death, Alexandra and husband Ewart offered major financial support and works from their own collection toward the creation of a public art gallery for the City of Oshawa. This became The Robert McLaughlin Gallery, named after Ewart's grandfather, in 1967.[3]

Select exhibitions

Select collections

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Nowell, Iris (2010). Painters Eleven: The Wild Ones of Canadian Art. Vancouver, BC: Douglas & McIntyre. pp. 101–111. ISBN 978-1-55365-590-9.
  2. 1 2 3 Murray, Joan (1987). Alexandra Luke: Continued Searching. Oshawa, Ontario: The Robert McLaughlin Gallery. pp. 1–9.
  3. ↑ "The History". The Robert McLaughlin Gallery. Retrieved 24 June 2013.

External links

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