Florence Wyle (November 14, 1881 – January 14, 1968) was an American-Canadian sculptor, designer and poet; a pioneer of the Canadian art scene. She practiced chiefly in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, living and working with her partner

Frances Loring Frances Norma Loring LL.D. (October 14, 1887– February 5, 1968) was a Canadian sculptor. Career Loring studied in Europe before enrolling at the Art Institute of Chicago, where she studied with Lorado Taft. She was a member of both the Royal C ...

, with whom she shared a studio and home for almost sixty years. In 1928, she co-founded and was a former president of the

Sculptors' Society of Canada The Sculptors Society of Canada (SSC) promotes and exhibits contemporary Canadian sculpture. Founded by Canadian sculptors Frances Loring, Florence Wyle, Elizabeth Wyn Wood, Wood's teacher and husband Emanuel Hahn, Henri Hébert and Alfred Lalibe ...

with Loring,

Alfred Laliberté Alfred Laliberté (19 May 1877 – 13 January 1953) was a French-Canadian sculptor and painter based in Montreal. His output includes more than 900 sculptures in bronze, marble, wood, and plaster. Many of his sculptures depict national figures ...

Elizabeth Wyn Wood Elizabeth Winnifred Wood (October 8, 1903 – January 27, 1966), known as Elizabeth Wyn Wood, was a Canadian sculptor and advocate of art education. A notable figure in Canadian sculpture, she is primarily known for her modernist interpretation ...

Emanuel Hahn Emanuel Otto Hahn (30 May 1881 – 14 February 1957) was a German-born Canadian sculptor and coin designer. He taught and later married Elizabeth Wyn Wood. He co-founded and was the first president of the Sculptors' Society of Canada. Biograph ...

and Henri Hébert, and was the first woman sculptor to become a full member of the

Royal Canadian Academy of Arts The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) is a Canadian arts-related organization that was founded in 1880. History 1880 to 1890 The title of Royal Canadian Academy of Arts was received from Queen Victoria on 16 July 1880. The Governor General ...

. Throughout her career, alongside Loring, she was a persistent and convincing advocate for policy, tax benefits and living wages for artist's work.

Biography

Wyle was born in

Trenton, Illinois Trenton is a city in Clinton County, Illinois, Clinton County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,690 at the 2020 census. Geography Trenton is located at (38.605943, -89.681725). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Trenton h ...

and in 1900 enrolled at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

as a pre-med student where anatomy classes awakened in her a wonder and reverence for human anatomy. Three years later (1903) she transferred to the

School of the Art Institute of Chicago The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) is a private art school associated with the Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to an art students' cooperative founded in 1866, which grew into the museum and ...

where she began studying clay modeling with

Lorado Taft Lorado Zadok Taft (April 29, 1860, in Elmwood, Illinois – October 30, 1936, in Chicago) was an American sculptor, writer and educator. His 1903 book, ''The History of American Sculpture,'' was the first survey of the subject and stood for deca ...

. She studied modelling and sculptural design in the USA under

. Wyle moved to

in 1913 to join Loring who had moved there the year before. Wyle worked as a sculptor in clay, plasticine, stone and wood until her death in 1968. Most of her carvings were executed by herself. One of her early works, ''Sun Worshipper'' (1916) is a bronze female nude "basking in the rays" and arching her body in a way that "hints more than a little at sexual pleasures." Wyle was a member of the

Ontario Society of Artists The Ontario Society of Artists (OSA) was founded in 1872. It is Canada's oldest continuously operating professional art society. When it was founded at the home of John Arthur Fraser, seven artists were present. Besides Fraser himself, Marmaduke M ...

(1920–1933, then from 1948), the

Sculptors Society of Canada The Sculptors Society of Canada (SSC) promotes and exhibits contemporary Canadian sculpture. Founded by Canadian sculptors Frances Loring, Florence Wyle, Elizabeth Wyn Wood, Wood's teacher and husband Emanuel Hahn, Henri Hébert and Alfred Lali ...

(1933), the

(associate 1920, full member 1938) and the

Canadian Guild of Potters The Canadian Guild of Potters was a non-profit organization of Canadian ceramic artists that was active from 1936 to 1978. Foundation The founding members of the Canadian Guild of Potters were Nunzia D'Angelo, Robert Montgomery and Bobs Cogill Ha ...

Career and official commissions

Wyle preferred architectural projects that were large in scale compared to her partner

. She was made a member of the

. Her work was often exhibited by the

Women's Art Association of Canada The Women's Art Association of Canada (WAAC) is an organization founded in 1887 to promote and support women artists and craftswomen in Canada, including artists in the visual media, performance artists and writers. At one time it had almost 1,000 ...

. Small figurines in wood which were part of the Dominion Drama Festival trophy set were among her commissions the year she was 80. The Ontario Veterinary College has one of her pieces, a bas-relief panel 13' high depicting farm animal. The late Pearl McCarthy, art critic for the ''Globe and Mail'', once said that large or small, cats or heroes, the sculpture of Frances Wyle had a lyrical as well as classical quality. *1926 – St. Stephen War Memorial *1957 – ''Mother and Children'', Canadian National Exhibition

Posthumous honour

In 2000 the Canadian Portrait Academy made Wyle an Honorary Academician naming her one of the Top 100 Artists of the 20th Century.

Publications

* *

References

External links

*
Florence Wyle archival papers
at the Art Gallery of Ontario research library and archives * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wyle, Florence 1881 births 1968 deaths Canadian women sculptors Canadian women poets American emigrants to Canada Canadian designers Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts 20th-century Canadian sculptors 20th-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian women artists 20th-century Canadian women writers Lesbian sculptors Lesbian poets Canadian lesbian artists American lesbian artists Canadian LGBT sculptors American LGBT sculptors Canadian LGBT poets American LGBT poets 20th-century American sculptors 20th-century American poets 20th-century American women artists 20th-century American women writers Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada) American women sculptors American women poets Artists from Illinois LGBT people from Illinois 19th-century American LGBT people 20th-century American LGBT people 19th-century Canadian LGBT people 20th-century Canadian LGBT people