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REID, Lillian Irene Hoffar
- Born
- Vancouver, British Columbia, 1908
- Died
- Sidney, British Columbia, 1994
- Biography synopsis
- A celebrated painter of portraits, murals, and decorative panels, Irene Hoffar Reid studied at the Vancouver School of Art under F. H. Varley and C. H. Scott (1925-29), later pursuing post-graduate studies at the same institution. In 1930, she journeyed to study under Monnington and Russell at the Royal Academy, where she remained for one year. Upon her return to British Columbia, Reid set up a studio and also became a teacher of drawing and painting at her alma mater (1933-1937). She was a member of both the British Columbia Society of Artists (from 1940-1967, serving as president from 1965-1967) and the Canadian Group of Painters (from 1959-1967, serving as president in 1958, 1960, and from 1966-1967), and exhibited extensively in group exhibitions in central and western Canada (at London, Windsor, Hamilton, Toronto, Montreal, Victoria, Vancouver) and once in the United States (at Seattle). Her work has been featured in solo exhibitions at the Unitarian Church, Vancouver (1969), at the Avalles Gallery, Vancouver (1970), at the New Westminster Public Library (1971), and at the Community Arts Council of North Vancouver (1973). Interestingly, Reid was also occasionally commissioned to decorate the interiors of yachts. Throughout her career, Reid garnered many awards, including the Beatrice Stone Medal for Black and White Drawing at the British Columbia Artists' Annual (1940), and the Canadian Centennial Medal for her contribution to the arts in Canada. In addition to being represented in a number of private collections, the artist's portrait entitled "Margaret" is owned by the Vancouver Art Gallery.
- Media used
- Drawing
- Mural painting and decoration
- Painting
- Education
- Vancouver School of Art, 1925 - 1929 (under F. H. Varley and C. H. Scott)
- Royal Academy, London, 1930 - 1931 (under Monnington and Russell)
- Memberships
- British Columbia Society of Artists, 1940
- Canadian Group of Painters, 1959
- File & Archive locations
- Montreal Museum of Fine Arts / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, QC
- Vancouver Public Library, BC - Fine Arts and History Department
- University of British Columbia - Fine Arts Library
- Vancouver Art Gallery, BC - Library
- Canadian Women Artists History Initiative Documentation Centre, QC
- Library and Archives Canada / Bibliothèque et Archives Canada, ON
- National Gallery of Canada, ON - Library and Archives
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
Writings about- Vancouver Hadassah Art Show and Auction, May 30, 1962 Vancouver: ?, 1962
- "Canadian Painters' Group Elects Officers by Regions" The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Toronto: February 4, 1961: 15
- Armour, Moira & Patricia Anne Staton. Canadian Women in History: A Chronology. Toronto, Ontario: Green Dragon Press, 1990
- Atanassova, Katerina, and Frederick Horsman. F. H. Varley: Portraits Into the Light Toronto: Dundurn Press, 2007
- Bouchard, Gilbert. "The Misunderstood Artist" Edmonton Journal Edmonton: December 6, 2007: D1
- Farrell-Ward, Lorna. "Tradition/Transition: The Keys to Change" Vancouver: Art and Artists, 1931-1983 Vancouver: Vancouver Art Gallery, 1983
- Godley, Elizabeth. "Same Subjects But Different Views in these Portraits of Running Water" Vancouver Sun Vancouver: September 22, 1987: D6
- Heffel Gallery. Irene Hoffar Reid: In Commemoration of the 60th Anniversary of the First Graduating Class From the Vancouver School of Design and Applied Arts, 1929 Vancouver: Heffel Gallery, 1989
- Latham, Barbara, and Roberta Jane Pazdro, eds.. Not Just Pin Money: Selected Essays On the History of Women's Work in British Columbia Victoria: Camosun, 1984
- Laurence, Robin. "Thematic Adherence No Excuse for Mediocrity." Vancouver Sun 24 Jun. 1995: D5
- Lindberg, E. Theodore et al. Vancouver School of Art: The Early Years, 1925-1939. Vancouver: Emily Carr College of Art and Design, 1980
- MacDonald, Colin S. The Dictionary of Canadian Artists. (Volumes 1-8 by Colin S. MacDonald, and volume 9 by Anne Newlands and Judith Parker) Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 2009.
- Mackie, John. "Panorama of Prints" Vancouver Sun Vancouver: September 22, 2006: C1
- Parry, Malcolm. "Ticker Would Get People Tocking" Vancouver Sun Vancouver: November 25, 2004: D5
- Richardson, Letia et al. First Class: Four Graduates from the Vancouver School of Decorative and Applied Arts, 1929: Lilias Farley, Irene Hoffar Reid, Beatrice Lennie, Vera Weatherbie. Vancouver: Floating Curatorial Gallery, Women in Focus, 1987
- Savage, Leslie. "Putting Women Into the Art Puzzle" Vancouver Sun Vancouver: November 5, 1987: B8
- Scott, Michael. "Varley and Vanderpant: A Portrait of Utopia" Vancouver Sun Vancouver: October 23, 1999: E14
- Stainer, Sofia. Shifting Margins: Emily Carr and Irene Hoffar Reid. Burnaby, B.C.: Burnaby Art Gallery, 2013
- Tippett, Maria. By a Lady. Toronto: Viking, 1992
- Tippett, Maria and Douglas Cole. From Desolation to Splendour: Changing Perceptions of the British Columbia Landscape Toronto: Clarke, Irwin and Company Ltd, 1977
