kathleen_dailey (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kathleen_dailey) wrote2023-05-28 12:50 pm
kathleen_dailey) wrote2023-05-28 12:50 pm
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The Guild of All Arts, as it once was
BlogTO recently published a piece on what is now called, evidently, Guild Park and Gardens. This is the site that was developed back in the 1930s as the Guild of All Arts by Spencer and Rosa Clark. The article doesn't mention Elizabeth Fraser Williamson, who was the last artist-in-residence from the days when the site was a true artists' colony.
The BlogTO article doesn't mention very much about the history of the site as an artists' colony. My spouse and I used to go for walks through the grounds fairly frequently, often after having brunch at the old Guild Inn. On one of those walks, we stopped to admire some sculptures on the lawn in front of one of the artists' cabins. The artist saw us looking, greeted us, and invited us in for tea. That was the beginning of my friendship with Elizabeth, who was the sculptor in residence at the time.
Her home, the old Osterhout cabin, was underheated, mildewy, badly plumbed, and barely functional as a full-time residence. But it was filled with her sculpture and artwork, and its setting on the beautiful, spacious grounds made me feel as if I'd crossed the border that separated the city of Scarborough (now part of Toronto) from some otherworldly lakeside paradise. The bluffside location was far from main streets, and of course at night the whole area was dark and very isolated. Her son expressed some concern about her living alone so far from friends and family, but she was adamant: she wasn't going anywhere. The neighbouring cabin was occupied by a very nice young policeman (not an artist, just a tenant; by this time, the other artists were long gone from the colony), who checked in with her on a regular basis. He was also cute, as she told me after her son left. ;-)
I have vivid memories of my visits with Elizabeth, and especially of the summer before I started law school, when I would see her a couple of times a week for tea, pastries, and art-talk. According to the artist's website, cited above, a large part of her work is held by the Lebovic Gallery, but I haven't been able to find a useful link. I hope it's collected safely in a place where everyone can enjoy and admire it.
The BlogTO article doesn't mention very much about the history of the site as an artists' colony. My spouse and I used to go for walks through the grounds fairly frequently, often after having brunch at the old Guild Inn. On one of those walks, we stopped to admire some sculptures on the lawn in front of one of the artists' cabins. The artist saw us looking, greeted us, and invited us in for tea. That was the beginning of my friendship with Elizabeth, who was the sculptor in residence at the time.
Her home, the old Osterhout cabin, was underheated, mildewy, badly plumbed, and barely functional as a full-time residence. But it was filled with her sculpture and artwork, and its setting on the beautiful, spacious grounds made me feel as if I'd crossed the border that separated the city of Scarborough (now part of Toronto) from some otherworldly lakeside paradise. The bluffside location was far from main streets, and of course at night the whole area was dark and very isolated. Her son expressed some concern about her living alone so far from friends and family, but she was adamant: she wasn't going anywhere. The neighbouring cabin was occupied by a very nice young policeman (not an artist, just a tenant; by this time, the other artists were long gone from the colony), who checked in with her on a regular basis. He was also cute, as she told me after her son left. ;-)
I have vivid memories of my visits with Elizabeth, and especially of the summer before I started law school, when I would see her a couple of times a week for tea, pastries, and art-talk. According to the artist's website, cited above, a large part of her work is held by the Lebovic Gallery, but I haven't been able to find a useful link. I hope it's collected safely in a place where everyone can enjoy and admire it.