HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Henrietta Mabel May (or H. Mabel May as she was sometimes known) (September 11, 1877 – October 8, 1971) was a Canadian artist in the early 20th century. She helped organize two significant groups of Canadian artists and extended collegiality to women within those groups.


Career

Henrietta Mabel May was born in Montreal and grew up in Verdun and Westmount. As a teenager, May showed an interest in art; however due to a sense of family responsibility, May, the fifth of ten children, postponed academic studies until her mid-twenties to look after her younger siblings. She enrolled at the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
, where she studied with
William Brymner William Brymner, (December 14, 1855 – June 18, 1925) was a Canadian figure and landscape painter and educator. In addition to playing a key role in the development of Impressionism in Canada, Brymner taught numerous artists who became leadin ...
and Alberta Cleland until 1912. Much like other Brymner students, she was then encouraged to travel to Europe. She spent a year there, from 1912 to 1913, during which she and her friend Emily Coonan travelled to Paris, Brittany, and London, among other places. The work she painted abroad, genre scenes and figure groupings demonstrate her knowledge of what she learned abroad,
Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...
. She returned from Europe ready to apply what she had learned to scenes of her homeland. During the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, she was commissioned by the Canadian War Memorials Fund to record the efforts of women working in Montreal munitions factories. Following 1920 she painted in a style influenced by
Post-Impressionism Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction ag ...
, and the
Group of Seven The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated member". It is official ...
and her work become more stylized. May was based in Quebec early in her career, then worked as a teacher from her studio in Montreal, at the Elmwood School in Ottawa. She was associated with the
National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...
in Ottawa, Ontario for a decade, returned to Quebec and ended her career in Vancouver, British Columbia. She showed with or organized groups including the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
, the
Beaver Hall Group The Beaver Hall Group refers to a Montreal-based group of Canadian painters who met in the late 1910s while studying art at a school run by the Art Association of Montreal. The Group is notable for its equal inclusion of men and women artists, as w ...
and the
Canadian Group of Painters The Canadian Group of Painters (CGP) was a collective of 28 painters from across Canada who came together as a group in 1933. Formation The Canadian Group of Painters succeeded the disbanded Group of Seven, whose paintings of the Canadian wilde ...
. Her works are in the collection of the
Canadian War Museum The Canadian War Museum (french: link=no, Musée canadien de la guerre; CWM) is a national museum on the country's military history in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum serves as both an educational facility on Canadian military history, in a ...
, the National Gallery of Canada, the Musée des Beaux-Arts Montréal,
Musée National des Beaux-Arts du Québec The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec ( en, National Museum of Fine Arts of Quebec), abbreviated as MNBAQ, is an art museum in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The museum is situated in Battlefield Park and is a complex consisting of four bui ...
, the
Vancouver Art Gallery The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is an art museum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The museum occupies a adjacent to Robson Square in downtown Vancouver, making it the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size. Designed by Franc ...
and other galleries. One art critic referred to May as the "Emily Carr of Montreal" due to her interest in landscape and nature. Her art was originally influenced by her avid interest in French
Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...
, but her mature style owed much to the
Group of Seven The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated member". It is official ...
and more international modernist trends.


Early life

May was born to Evelyn Henrietta Walker and Edward May. Her date of birth is often reported as 1884, but she was in fact born on September 11, 1877. Her father, Edward May was a
self-made man "Self-made man" is a classic phrase coined on February 2, 1842 by Henry Clay in the United States Senate, to describe individuals whose success lay within the individuals themselves, not with outside conditions. Benjamin Franklin, one of the Foun ...
and became the mayor of Verdun, a borough on the outskirts of
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
. He later became a successful real estate developer and moved her and the rest of her family to a more prosperous neighbourhood in Montreal called Westmount.


Education

Though Henrietta displayed an active interest in art throughout her early years, she did not pursue formal education until she was in her mid-twenties. She delayed her education in order to help take care of her nine younger brothers and sisters while her parents worked trying to provide for them. In 1902 she became one of the first female students enrolled in the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
(AAM) (1909 – 1912) under teachers Alberta Cleland and
William Brymner William Brymner, (December 14, 1855 – June 18, 1925) was a Canadian figure and landscape painter and educator. In addition to playing a key role in the development of Impressionism in Canada, Brymner taught numerous artists who became leadin ...
. There she was awarded scholarships twice. During this time, she exhibited small watercolours as part of the 1910 Art Association of Montreal Annual Spring Exhibition. Cleland was a woman artist from Montreal who worked with a broad range of subjects and tools. Brymner was an important influence on Mabel's style of art and taught her from 1909 until the end of her studies in 1912. May was influenced by Brymner's teachings of French modernism, including
Impressionism Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open Composition (visual arts), composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating ...
and
Post-Impressionism Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction ag ...
and his encouragement for students to find their own individual style. These influences took her and her friend fellow artist Emily Coonan to France, England and Holland after her graduation in 1912. There she travelled, visited galleries, studied and painted until her return to Montreal in 1913 where she opened a studio. During her travels, she studied with
James Wilson Morrice James Wilson Morrice (August 10, 1865 – January 23, 1924) was one of the first Canadian landscape painters to be known internationally. He studied at the Académie Julian in Paris, France, where he lived for most of his career. James Morrice S ...
, who strongly influenced her style of painting. Her family owned a second home in the countryside of
Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...
, Quebec, where she frequently retreated to paint.


Career

The years following her education brought May a series of remarkable achievements and work opportunities. In 1913 the National Gallery bought three of her art works and would eventually buy two more before 1924. In 1916, after May returned to Montreal, she joined other female artists who worked on commissioned pieces specifically about women's involvement in the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. One of her major works was a detailed six-by-seven foot canvas entitled
Women Making Shells
' (1919) honouring munitions workers in a factory. Characterized by scattered light and textured brushwork, this painting displays May’s interest in Impressionism. During May's commissioned employment with the
Royal Canadian Academy 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 ...
, she made 250 dollars per month, a large fee at that time.


Beaver Hall Group

In 1920, May was a founding member of the
Beaver Hall Group The Beaver Hall Group refers to a Montreal-based group of Canadian painters who met in the late 1910s while studying art at a school run by the Art Association of Montreal. The Group is notable for its equal inclusion of men and women artists, as w ...
in
Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
, which supported the local Montreal art community and organized exhibits of their work. Initially led by
A. Y. Jackson Alexander Young Jackson LL. D. (October 3, 1882April 5, 1974) was a Canadian painter and a founding member of the Group of Seven. Jackson made a significant contribution to the development of art in Canada, and was instrumental in bringing toget ...
of the Group of Seven, the Beaver Hall Group was a selection of talented painters from Montreal; most of them had attended the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
and/or studied under
William Brymner William Brymner, (December 14, 1855 – June 18, 1925) was a Canadian figure and landscape painter and educator. In addition to playing a key role in the development of Impressionism in Canada, Brymner taught numerous artists who became leadin ...
. The Beaver Hall Group was extremely progressive at the time for allowing women to join and have important roles and positions. Though the group officially disbanded around 1924, a majority of the female members continued to do artistic work afterwards, nearly all of them foregoing marriage or childbearing to do so. Many of the women continued to work with and exhibit with each other. Among those were
Prudence Heward Prudence Heward (July 5, 1896 – March 19, 1947)Ferrari, Prudence. "Prudence Heward: Painting at Home." (2001). In ''Framing Our Past: Canadian Women's History in the Twentieth Century,'' S.A. Cook, L.R. McLean, and K. O'Rourke, eds. Montreal: Mc ...
,
Lilias Torrance Newton Lilias Torrance Newton LL. D. (November 3, 1896 – January 10, 1980) was a Canadian painterMabel Lockerby Mabel Irene Lockerby (March 13, 1882 – May 1, 1976) was a Canadian artist. Career Lockerby`s birth year is sometimes attributed as 1887 from her own curriculum vitae but she was actually born in 1882 She was born in Montreal to Alexander ...
, Anne Savage, Sarah Robertson, Nora Collyer,
Kathleen Morris Kathleen "Kay" Moir Morris (December 2, 1893 – December 20, 1986) was a Canadians, Canadian painter and member of the Beaver Hall Group. Biography The fourth child and only daughter of Montague John Morris and Eliza Howard Bell, she was bor ...
, Ethel Seath and Emily Coonan, with whom May had travelled in Europe in 1912, was also a member of the group but preferred to go her own way when the group disbanded. In the winter of 1924, May travelled to
Baie-Saint-Paul Baie-Saint-Paul ( 2011 Population 7,332; UA population 4,535) is a city in the Province of Quebec, Canada, on the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River. Baie-Saint-Paul is the seat of Charlevoix Regional County Municipality. The city is ...
, where she painted with
A.Y. Jackson Alexander Young Jackson LL. D. (October 3, 1882April 5, 1974) was a Canadian painter and a founding member of the Group of Seven. Jackson made a significant contribution to the development of art in Canada, and was instrumental in bringing toget ...
of the
Group of Seven The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated member". It is official ...
. May developed a landscape style in part based on the aesthetic of the group. In 1927, May, along with three other women from the Beaver Hall Group, met with the British Columbian painter
Emily Carr Emily Carr (or M. Emily Carr as she sometimes signed her work) (December 13, 1871 – March 2, 1945) was a Canadian artist and writer who was inspired by the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. One of the painters in Canada to ado ...
.


Canadian Group of Painters

Shortly after the Beaver Hall Group dissolved, May founded a new group: the
Canadian Group of Painters The Canadian Group of Painters (CGP) was a collective of 28 painters from across Canada who came together as a group in 1933. Formation The Canadian Group of Painters succeeded the disbanded Group of Seven, whose paintings of the Canadian wilde ...
, which officially began in 1933. The group had their first exhibition the same year of their founding in Atlantic City, New Jersey, followed by another exhibition in Toronto a few months later. The group was the successor of the
Group of Seven The Group of Seven (G7) is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States; additionally, the European Union (EU) is a "non-enumerated member". It is official ...
and the Beaver Hall Group. May's involvement with the Canadian Group of Painters lasted a few years, but while she was in that group, the problems of the Great Depression affected her and her family's finances. She moved to Ottawa, Ontario, where she taught in a private school. In 1938 she was appointed leader of children's classes at the
National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...
. She taught for 12 years until 1950, when she returned to Montreal, before later moving to Vancouver, British Columbia.


Artistic style

Henrietta Mabel May's primary medium was painting in oil. Initially, she followed the Impressionists. Her main focus was landscapes, although she also painted human figures. Her paint strokes were very strong and pleasing to the eye as the colours flowed together softly. The colours she used were not straight from the tube but blended for more of a naturalistic approach. While May travelled to Europe, she was inspired by the culture of Paris, which was incorporated into her work. During the time she spent in Hudson every summer, she painted the views around her, creating some of her most successful works. In 1913 her paintings began garnering a lot of recognition and attention. She won the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
's Jessie Dow Award in 1914 and 1918. She sold four of her works to the
National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...
and continued to sell several more in the following years. She was elected as an associate 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 ...
in 1915. May was a bold painter who could paint unusual scenes that people did not expect from a woman. For example, ''Women Making Shells'' was a powerful painting conveying a scene where women were working in a factory along with men, a novel scene at that time. Once she became a member of the
Beaver Hall Group The Beaver Hall Group refers to a Montreal-based group of Canadian painters who met in the late 1910s while studying art at a school run by the Art Association of Montreal. The Group is notable for its equal inclusion of men and women artists, as w ...
, her style began to deviate from its impressionistic origins. As the years went on, May's naturalistic approach of applying colour in soothing, rhythmic brushstrokes developed greatly. Her art exhibited more realism, and showed a greater understanding of light and the atmosphere in her landscapes. She began to take on the style of the Group of Seven by whom she was heavily influenced. May's ''Melting Snow'' (1925) was a reflection of the dancing waters and lyrical mountains surrounded by flat colours and hills. In addition, she used loose brushstrokes in the sky. Her palette was further modified by the influence of a religious group she joined in the late 1930s. An offshoot of the theosophists, the
I AM I Am or I'm may refer to: Language and literature * "I Am that I Am", a common English translation of the response God used in the Hebrew Bible when Moses asked for His name ** I am (biblical term), a Christian term used in the Bible * "I Am" (po ...
group believed that dark colors produce negative effects.


Collections

*''The Market under the Trees (''1912-3)'',The Regatta'' (1914), ''Street Scene, Montreal'' (1914), ''Boats on the St. Lawrence (1916), In the Laurentians (''1925), ''The Village'' (1925), and ''Melting Snow'' (1925) are part of the permanent collection of the
National Gallery of Canada The National Gallery of Canada (french: Musée des beaux-arts du Canada), located in the capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, is Canada's national art museum. The museum's building takes up , with of space used for exhibiting art. It is one of the l ...
. *''Été'' (about 1935) and ''Paysage d'automne'' (about 1930) are both part of the permanent collection at the
Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec The Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec ( en, National Museum of Fine Arts of Quebec), abbreviated as MNBAQ, is an art museum in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The museum is situated in Battlefield Park and is a complex consisting of four bui ...
. *''Three Sisters'' (1915) is part of the
Beaverbrook Art Gallery The Beaverbrook Art Gallery is a public art gallery in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. It is named after William Maxwell "Max" Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, who funded the building of the gallery and assembled the original collection. It opened i ...
collection. *''Snowflakes, Studio Window'' (1925) is part of the
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
. *''Autumn in the Laurentians'' (1925) is part of the permanent collection of the
Vancouver Art Gallery The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is an art museum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The museum occupies a adjacent to Robson Square in downtown Vancouver, making it the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size. Designed by Franc ...
.


Exhibitions

May exhibited frequently. She participated in the
Art Association of Montreal The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA; french: Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, MBAM) is an art museum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the largest art museum in Canada by gallery space. The museum is located on the historic Golden Square ...
's spring exhibitions from 1910 to 1967, and in the exhibitions of the
Royal Canadian Academy 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 ...
of Arts from 1910 to 1952. She also showed with the Group of Seven in Toronto in 1928, 1930 and 1931 and, as a founding member of the
Canadian Group of Painters The Canadian Group of Painters (CGP) was a collective of 28 painters from across Canada who came together as a group in 1933. Formation The Canadian Group of Painters succeeded the disbanded Group of Seven, whose paintings of the Canadian wilde ...
in 1933, she also exhibited with them. From 1938 to 1947 she showed her work with a group called Le Caveau. May's international exposure in group shows included the influential British Empire Exhibition in Wembley, England, the Musée du Jeu de Paume in Paris, the
Corcoran Gallery of Art The Corcoran Gallery of Art was an art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, that is now the location of the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design, a part of the George Washington University. Overview The Corcoran School of the Arts & Design ...
in Washington, DC as well as the
Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...
in London, among others. Upon her retirement to Vancouver at the age of 50, she held a
retrospective A retrospective (from Latin ''retrospectare'', "look back"), generally, is a look back at events that took place, or works that were produced, in the past. As a noun, ''retrospective'' has specific meanings in medicine, software development, popu ...
of her work at the Dominion Gallery. This show resulted in the sale of 100 of her paintings. A posthumous exhibition of her work along with other works from the Beaver Hall Group occurred at the Sir George Williams Art Galleries (now Concordia Art Gallery) in October 1982. In 2015, the Musée des Beaux-Arts Montréal organized a multi-museum tour of a show containing May's work among others: ''1920s Modernism in Montreal: The Beaver Hall Group''.


Personal life

May never married, but was immersed in the family life of her nine brothers and sisters. After the dissolution of the Beaver Hall Group's studios, she retained close personal friendships with the remaining female artists, including
Lilias Torrance Newton Lilias Torrance Newton LL. D. (November 3, 1896 – January 10, 1980) was a Canadian painterMabel Lockerby Mabel Irene Lockerby (March 13, 1882 – May 1, 1976) was a Canadian artist. Career Lockerby`s birth year is sometimes attributed as 1887 from her own curriculum vitae but she was actually born in 1882 She was born in Montreal to Alexander ...
, Anne Savage, Sarah Robertson, and Nora Collyer. Savage remembered her as both a painter and a person:
''She was a brilliant figure at the gallery. She painted with such vigour and strength - gay, rhythmic colour using the impressionist's technique of scintillating colour. She spent some time in France, came back radiant - loved life - painted in the landscapes of the Eastern Townships, where she built up her singing happy pictures.''


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:May, Henrietta Mabel 1877 births 1971 deaths 20th-century Canadian painters 20th-century Canadian women artists Anglophone Quebec people Artists from Montreal Canadian war artists Canadian women painters Canadian Impressionist painters