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VILSONS, Velta
- Born
- Talsi, Latvia, 1919
- Biography synopsis
- Vilsons immigrated to Montreal in 1952 where her weaving and design works, especially wall hangings, were quickly recognised. She had learned to weave while growing up on a farm in Latvia where she had attended agricultural school. In Montreal she initially worked in the studio of textile artist Karen Bulow but after two years moved to Toronto, founding the Handweaving Studio in 1956 with Ilza Polma. She eventually chose to work independently and gave the studio her own name. Vilsons participated in various solo and group exhibitions from the late 50s to early 70s. In 1957 her work was shown at the first national Crafts Exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada as well as at the Universal Exhibition in Brussels in 1958. In 1965 she won international awards for her work. In Canada, she won a Design Award from the National Design Council (1967), exhibited at the Ontario Craft Council as well as other galleries (1970), and in 1971 her work was exhibited at the Art Gallery of Ontario. She also taught weaving at George Brown College in Toronto. Her works are held at the Royal Ontario Museum and various galleries in Toronto.
- Media used
- Textiles
- Weaving
- File & Archive locations
- Art Gallery of Ontario - Edward P. Taylor Research Library and Archives
- Montreal Museum of Fine Arts / Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal, QC
- National Gallery of Canada, ON - Library and Archives
- Toronto Reference Library, ON
- University of British Columbia - Fine Arts Library
- Winnipeg Art Gallery, MA - Clara Lander Library
- BIBLIOGRAPHY
Writings about- "Canada Arts, Crafts For Brussels Show." The Globe and Mail 10 Aug. 1957: 15
- "Exposition- concours des Artisans." La Presse 22 June 1967: 14
- "Gallery holds a Festival of Crafts." Toronto Star 03 Jul 1982: G15
- "Les Metiers de l'art de l'Ontario a la Galerie des Artisans." Le Droit 16 Jun 1966: 12
- Baird, G., Gotlieb, R., Kingwell, M. and Gardiner Museum. True Nordic: How Scandinavia Influenced Design in Canada London: Black Dog Publishing Ltd., 2016
- Carson, Jo. "No Easy Way to Mastery of the Art of Weaving." The Globe and Mail 05 feb. 1976: 1
- Cherry, Zena. "Tour of Port Hope Homes a walk into the Past." The Globe and Mail 02 Oct. 1981: 20
- Crawford, Gail. A Fine Line: Studio Crafts in Ontario from 1930 to the Present Toronto: Dundurn Press, 1998
- Dempsey, Lotta. "Person to Person." The Globe and Mail 03 Nov. 1955: 16
- Dingman, Elizabeth. "New Tapestry by Velta Vilsons." Craftsman 3.3 (June 1967): 5
- Fine, Janet. "Leurs Oeuvres se vendent trop vite." Le Droit (Ottawa) 21 July 1975: 14
- Fine, Janet. "Velta Vilsons expose." Le Soleil 25 Aug. 1975: C7
- Gogarty, Amy. "Scandinavian Design Influences Canada." Galleries West 4 Dec. 2017
- Gotlieb, Rachel and Cora Golden. Design in Canada since 1945: Fifty years from Teakettles to Task Chairs Toronto, Ontario: Key Porter Books, 2004
- Moriyama, R. G. Barnes, T. Beament et al.. Make(mak): An Exhibition of Contemporary Crafts by Ontario's Leading Designer-Craftsmen Toronto, Ontario: Ontario Crafts Council, 1971
- Wilson, Peter. "Art Gallery of Ontario: Wall Hangings take on a New Meaning." Toronto Daily Star 20 Feb 1971: 61
