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WILLIS, Dorothy Gwendolyn Henzell
- Born
- Newcastle, England, 1899
- Died
- Victoria, British Columbia, 1985
- Biography synopsis
- Dorothy Willis moved to Edmonton with her family in 1913 and eventually studied art at the Edmonton Technical High School. On graduating, she took courses at the Banff School of Fine Arts with A.C. Leighton, at Columbia University for three summer sessions (1918-1920), and also studied under Armin Hansen in Monterey, California in 1920. Described by some as "eccentric," her painting was highly expressive, incorporating strong colours and bold shapes. In 1947 she moved to Vancouver and taught art at the University of British Columbia's Extension Program where she encouraged creativity over technique; she also had a strong interest in art as therapy. In addition to a number of solo exhibitions, her work was included in group shows throughout Canada: the Art Association of Montreal, the Manitoba Society of Arts, the Canadian Society of Painters in Watercolors, and the "Calgary Group" exhibition in Vancouver in 1948. One of her works was included in the Riverside Exhibition of Canadian Women Artists in 1947. In 1950 she traveled to Paris where she led a bohemian life. A number of her works are held at the University of Alberta Art Gallery and the Alberta Foundation of the Arts. She was a member of the Edmonton Art Club, the Alberta Society of Artists, the Edmonton Sketch Club, and the Alberta Women Sketch Hunters. Most of her works are undated.
- Media used
- Painting
- Printmaking
- Education
- Banff School of Fine Arts
- Columbia University, New York
- Department of Art, Edmonton Technical High School
- Memberships
- Edmonton Sketch Club
- Alberta Society of Artists
- Edmonton Art Club
- Calgary Group
- File & Archive locations
- Art Gallery of Ontario - Edward P. Taylor Research Library and Archives
- London Public Library, ON
- National Gallery of Canada, ON - Library and Archives
- Montreal Museum of Fine Arts / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, QC
- Toronto Reference Library, ON
- University of British Columbia - Fine Arts Library
- Vancouver Art Gallery, BC - Library
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
Writings about- "Edmonton Art Club gives Sunday Preview of 18th Annual Exhibition." Edmonton Journal 10 Apr. 1939
- "Edmonton Artists Work on Display." Vancouver Sun 13 Jan. 1943: 12
- "Pipe Smoking Artist paints Her Dreams Away." Globe and Mail 28 Jan. 1948: 10
- "Porridge, Sawdust and Sand Media for Creative Artist." Vancouver News Herald 1947
- "Select Painting by City Woman." Edmonton Journal 6 Aug. 1943
- Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. Printmaking in British Columbia, 1889-1983 : October 6 to November 27, 1983 : Art Gallery of Greater Victoria Victoria: 1983
- Bouchard, Gilbert. "Prairie Painter Soared, then Canada `Forgot all about her': Alberta Art Pioneer Brought back to Life in Retrospective Show." Edmonton Journal 16 Mar 2001: E6
- Burns, Ruth and Laviolette, Mary-Beth. Rough Country: The Strangely Familiar in Mid-20th Century Alberta Art Edmonton: Art Gallery of Alberta, 2016
- Gachon, Jean. "Une Canadienne expose a Paris: Mme. Dorothy Henzell Willis presentent ses oeuvres au publique Parisien." La Presse 15 Feb 1950
- Lang, Naomi. "Artist Dorothy Willis Back from Gypsing over Europe." Vancouver Sun 26 Jan. 1952
- LaViolette, Mary-Beth. Alberta Mistresses of the Modern, 1935-1975 Edmonton: Art Gallery of Alberta, 2012
- MacDonald, Dorothy Ann. ""Painting Cares Away." The Vancouver Sun Magazine 24 Jul. 1948
- McGlynn, Betty Hoad. Carmel Art Association: a History Carmel, CA: Carmel Art Association, 1987
- Norbury, F.H. "Art Club Shows Fine Pictures at Exhibition." Edmonton 1936
- Pageot, Edith-Anne. "Ambiguités de la réception critique de l'exposition 'Canadian Women Artists', Riverside Museum, New York, 1947." RACAR 27.1-2 (2000): 123-34
Full text pdfs of exhibition reviews- Art Association of Montreal Annual Spring Exhibition: (Montreal, March 18, 1937) "Nearly 500 Works at Spring Exhibit. Art Association's 54th Annual Show Opens with Private Views. Judges Open-Minded." Gazette (Montreal) March 19, 1937. p.13,17. Full-text pdf
- Art Association of Montreal Annual Spring Exhibition: (Montreal, March 15, 1940) "Art Association Opens 57th Spring Exhibit. Notable Feature of Display Is Unusually Large Proportion Of Portraits or Portrait Studies." Montreal Star March 21, 1940. p.19. Full-text pdf
