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BLAKE, Sarah Mary

Born
Galway, Ireland, 1864
Died
Alberta, 1933
Biography synopsis
A gifted amateur painter of landscapes, Sarah Mary Blake was an astute observer of her surroundings. After attending a convent at St. Leonards-on-the-Sea in Sussex, where she took art classes among her general studies, she lived in England and France with her mother and sisters. In 1887, she moved to Alberta to join her brother, Frank, who had started the Deer Horn Ranch on the north fork of the Old Man River. Three years later, she married Alfred Lynch-Staunton who established the North-West Mounted Police Detachment at Pincher Creek, Alberta. They had eight children, three of whom died. Besides landscapes, Blake also produced small sketches and party invitations, and decorated the doors of her home with local outdoor scenes. Her watercolour, "Deer Horn Ranch," can be found in the collection of the Glenbow Museum.
Media used
Painting
Watercolour
File & Archive locations
Alberta Culture and Community Spirit - Arts Branch
Hamilton Public Library, ON - Local History and Archives Department
Glenbow Archives, AB - Main Catalogue
Canadian Women Artists History Initiative Documentation Centre, QC
BIBLIOGRAPHY

Writings about
Kobayashi, Terry and Michael Bird. A Compendium of Canadian Folk Artists Erin, Ontario: Boston Mills Press, 1985
McKendry, Blake. A to Z of Canadian Art: Artists and Art Terms Kingston: B. McKendry, 1997
McKendry, Blake. Dictionary of Folk Artists in Canada: From the 17th Century to the Present Elginburg: Blake McKendry, 1988
Mitchell, Alanna. "'Women's Work' Not Worth the Trouble: a Major show of Women's Art through the Century fails to do Justice to the Complexity of its Subject." Globe and Mail (Toronto) 4 Jan. 1997: C12
Render, Lorne E. Glenbow Collects: An Exhibition. Calgary: Glenbow-Alberta Art Gallery, 1969
Render, Lorne E. The Mountains and The Sky. Calgary: Glenbow-Alberta Institute, 1974
Williamson, Moncrieff. Through Canadian Eyes: Trends and Influences in Canadian Art: 1815-1965 Calgary: Glenbow-Alberta Institute, 1976

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