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Artist Database
FORSYTH, Mina Mabel
- Born
- Estevan, Saskatchewan, 1920
- Died
- ?, ?, 1987
- Biography synopsis
- Mina Mabel Forsyth (nee McDonald) was born in Estevan, Saskatchewan, in 1920. Before beginning her career in the arts, Forsyth completed an Associate’s and Fellows course in banking at Queen’s University, while working at the Bank of Montreal. From 1942 to 1946 she worked for the British Air Commission in Washington and New York. In 1955, Forsyth completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Manitoba and went on to complete a Masters of Fine Arts from Michigan State University in 1957. In 1966, Forsyth began teaching painting and drawing classes at the University of Saskatchewan, becoming a full time professor in 1981. Between 1955 and 1987 Forsyth attended five Emma Lake Workshops; in 1977 she was a guest artist. These two-week workshops, which brought together practicing artists from across the country, are credited with aiding in the formation of the ‘Regina Five.’ Throughout her career Forsyth’s main focus was on the continued improvement of her craft and supporting her students in their practice. Mina Forsyth passed away in 1987, and in 1991 she received a Lifetime Award from the Saskatchewan Arts Board. Forsyth’s expressionist and abstract landscapes, figural works and still life paintings can be found in many public and private collections across the country.
- Media used
- Drawing
- Painting
- Education
- Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
- University of Manitoba, ? - 1955
- Michigan State University, ? - 1957
- File & Archive locations
- Artexte Information Centre, QC - Documentation Centre
- Alberta Culture and Community Spirit - Arts Branch
- University of British Columbia - Fine Arts Library
- Vancouver Art Gallery, BC - Library
- Winnipeg Art Gallery, MA - Clara Lander Library
- London Public Library, ON
- National Gallery of Canada, ON - Library and Archives
- Montreal Museum of Fine Arts / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, QC
- Saskatchewan Archival Information Network (SAIN)
- Canadian Women Artists History Initiative Documentation Centre, QC
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
Writings about- A Passionate Eye: Mina Forsyth Regina, Saskatchewan: Organization of Saskatchewan Arts Council, 1997.
- Another Eleven Saskatchewan Artists Saskatoon, Saskatchewan: Mendel Art Gallery, 1972.
- "Saskatchewan and the Visual Arts." Saskatchewan Council for Archives and Archivists 2009
http://scaa.usask.ca/gallery/art/artists-forsyth.html. - Arnold, Grant. Mina Forsyth: Flowers and Heads Saskatoon, Saskatchewan: Mendel Art Gallery, 1985.
- Higgins, Mandy. "Exhibition Features Abstract Pieces by Saskatchewan Artists." Moose Jaw Times-Herald 10 Apr. 2010: A11.
- 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.
- Newman, Marketa. The Biographical Dictionary of Saskatchewan Artists, 2 Volumes. Saskatoon: Fifth House, 1990.
- Prakash, A. K. Independent Spirit: Early Canadian Women's Art. Buffalo, New York: Firefly Books, 2008.
- Roberts, Lorne. "Big Print: U of M exhibit of Printmaking Highlights City as Hotbed of Creativity during the '50s." Winnipeg Free Press 16 Dec. 2004: D5.
Writings by- Forsyth, Mina Mabel. Drawings and Paintings Michigan, United States of America: Michigan State University, 1957.
- Forsyth, Mina Mabel. The Painting of a Triptych: Subject Matter - Saskatchewan Winnipeg, Manitob: University of Manitoba, 1955.
