Augustus Kenderdine
Encyclopedia
Augustus Frederick Lafosse (Gus) Kenderdine (1870—1947) was a landscape and portrait artist of Lancashire
and Saskatchewan
, a farmer of Saskatchewan, and academic at the University of Saskatchewan
.
on 23 April 1870.
Kenderdine first studied art under his godfather, Chevalier de la Fosse, a Belgian-born painter and photographer, at the Manchester School of Art, now part of the Manchester Metropolitan University
. Subsequently he was apprenticed to several local artists before establishing the business of "Gus Kenderdine: Photographer and Art Dealer" in 1890.
From 1890 to 1891, Kenderdine studied with Jules Lefèbvre
at the Académie Julian
in Paris
, and his work was subsequently displayed at the Paris Salon
.
On returning to England, Kenderdine joined the Blackpool Sketching Club, now known as the Blackpool Art Society, in 1891, and was a prolific exhibitor at their annual exhibitions and an occasional committee member. He displayed many oils and an occasional charcoal and chalk of landscapes around the Lake District
, along the River Wyre
and the local Lancastrian coastline and countryside. He also displayed a number of life, head and group studies, and in 1901 and 1902 several of his paintings were hung at the Royal Academy's Annual Summer Exhibition.
In 1894 Kenderdine married Jane Ormerod at Garstang
, where he had been painting, and they subsequently had four children.
, inspired Kenderdine to immigrate with his family to the Province of Saskatchewan in Canada, where he homesteaded near Lashburn
. For the next decade he was preoccupied by the rigors of farming and ranching, before turning his farming operations over to his son, and returning to his painting.
Kenderdine secured several portrait commissions, and in subsequent years exhibited his work across Canada, but was best known in Saskatchewan. He seldom painted in watercolour, although he did several landscape studies in charcoal and wash in a style reminiscent of Gainsborough
. His sweeping romantic depictions of the Saskatchewan landscape, especially around Emma Lake, were indelibly marked by his training in England and France. His imagery recast the province's topography in the comforting image of Europe. As a teacher he influenced generations of landscape painters, among them Wynona Mulcaster, Reta Cowley and Dorothy Knowles.
In 1920 Kenderdine met Walter Charles Murray
, the first president of the University of Saskatchewan, who wanted to establish an art program. He provided studio space in the Physics Building on the Saskatoon
Campus, where Kenderdine could work and teach. In the 1926–27 term, Kenderdine began to teach non-credit classes which, by 1933, had become credit classes.
In 1936 he established the Murray Point Art School at Emma Lake
, which became the University Art Camp which was the forerunner of the Emma Lake Artists' Workshops
which became the genesis of the Emma Lake Kenderdine Campus which was named in his honour. Kenderdine's passion for the "wilderness" of northern Saskatchewan, and his enthusiasm for attracting people to his summer art camps, corresponded with the beginnings of the local tourist industry.
Also in 1936, a School of Fine Art was established at Regina College, now the Regina Conservatory of Music, by Norman MacKenzie
, who, as part of his bequest, appointed Kenderdine as the School's first head and curator of the gallery, which he held until his death in Regina on 3 August 1947.
, the Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery
, the Mendel Art Gallery
and the National Gallery of Canada
.
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
and Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, a farmer of Saskatchewan, and academic at the University of Saskatchewan
University of Saskatchewan
The University of Saskatchewan is a Canadian public research university, founded in 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. An "Act to establish and incorporate a University for the Province of Saskatchewan" was passed by the...
.
England
Kenderdine was born the third of six children to Richard and Annie Kenderdine on 31 March 1870 at Chorlton-upon-Medlock in Lancashire, and subsequently christened at the Manchester CathedralManchester Cathedral
Manchester Cathedral is a medieval church on Victoria Street in central Manchester and is the seat of the Bishop of Manchester. The cathedral's official name is The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George in Manchester...
on 23 April 1870.
Kenderdine first studied art under his godfather, Chevalier de la Fosse, a Belgian-born painter and photographer, at the Manchester School of Art, now part of the Manchester Metropolitan University
Manchester Metropolitan University
Manchester Metropolitan University is a university in North West England. Its headquarters and central campus is in the city of Manchester, but there are outlying facilities in the county of Cheshire. It is the third largest university in the United Kingdom in terms of student numbers, behind the...
. Subsequently he was apprenticed to several local artists before establishing the business of "Gus Kenderdine: Photographer and Art Dealer" in 1890.
From 1890 to 1891, Kenderdine studied with Jules Lefèbvre
Jules Joseph Lefebvre
Jules Joseph Lefebvre was a French figure painter.Lefebvre entered the École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts in 1852 and was a pupil of Léon Cogniet. He won the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1861. Between 1855 and 1898, he exhibited 72 portraits in the Paris Salon...
at the Académie Julian
Académie Julian
The Académie Julian was an art school in Paris, France.Rodolphe Julian established the Académie Julian in 1868 at the Passage des Panoramas, as a private studio school for art students. The Académie Julian not only prepared students to the exams at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, but offered...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and his work was subsequently displayed at the Paris Salon
Paris Salon
The Salon , or rarely Paris Salon , beginning in 1725 was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France. Between 1748–1890 it was the greatest annual or biannual art event in the Western world...
.
On returning to England, Kenderdine joined the Blackpool Sketching Club, now known as the Blackpool Art Society, in 1891, and was a prolific exhibitor at their annual exhibitions and an occasional committee member. He displayed many oils and an occasional charcoal and chalk of landscapes around the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
, along the River Wyre
River Wyre
The River Wyre is a river in Lancashire, United Kingdom, which flows into the Irish Sea at Fleetwood. It is approximately 28 miles in length...
and the local Lancastrian coastline and countryside. He also displayed a number of life, head and group studies, and in 1901 and 1902 several of his paintings were hung at the Royal Academy's Annual Summer Exhibition.
In 1894 Kenderdine married Jane Ormerod at Garstang
Garstang
Garstang is a town and civil parish within the Wyre borough of Lancashire, England. It is ten miles north-northwest of the city of Preston and eleven miles south of Lancaster, and had a total resident population of 4,074 in 2001....
, where he had been painting, and they subsequently had four children.
Saskatchewan
In 1908, the stories of the Barr Colonists and their Utopian settlement of Brittania, now known as LloydminsterLloydminster
Lloydminster is a Canadian city which has the unusual geographic distinction of straddling the provincial border between Alberta and Saskatchewan...
, inspired Kenderdine to immigrate with his family to the Province of Saskatchewan in Canada, where he homesteaded near Lashburn
Lashburn, Saskatchewan
-Demographics:-External links:...
. For the next decade he was preoccupied by the rigors of farming and ranching, before turning his farming operations over to his son, and returning to his painting.
Kenderdine secured several portrait commissions, and in subsequent years exhibited his work across Canada, but was best known in Saskatchewan. He seldom painted in watercolour, although he did several landscape studies in charcoal and wash in a style reminiscent of Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough
Thomas Gainsborough was an English portrait and landscape painter.-Suffolk:Thomas Gainsborough was born in Sudbury, Suffolk. He was the youngest son of John Gainsborough, a weaver and maker of woolen goods. At the age of thirteen he impressed his father with his penciling skills so that he let...
. His sweeping romantic depictions of the Saskatchewan landscape, especially around Emma Lake, were indelibly marked by his training in England and France. His imagery recast the province's topography in the comforting image of Europe. As a teacher he influenced generations of landscape painters, among them Wynona Mulcaster, Reta Cowley and Dorothy Knowles.
In 1920 Kenderdine met Walter Charles Murray
Walter Charles Murray
Walter Charles Murray was the first President of the University of Saskatchewan.-Biography:Born in Kings County, New Brunswick, he received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of New Brunswick in 1886. In 1891, he received a Master of Arts degree from the University of Edinburgh...
, the first president of the University of Saskatchewan, who wanted to establish an art program. He provided studio space in the Physics Building on the Saskatoon
Saskatoon
Saskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
Campus, where Kenderdine could work and teach. In the 1926–27 term, Kenderdine began to teach non-credit classes which, by 1933, had become credit classes.
In 1936 he established the Murray Point Art School at Emma Lake
Emma Lake, Saskatchewan
Emma Lake is a combined campground, and lake. The area has a population of around 900 in the summertime, and 200 in the wintertime. Emma Lake is 45 kilometers north of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and 5 kilometers from Christopher Lake, Saskatchewan....
, which became the University Art Camp which was the forerunner of the Emma Lake Artists' Workshops
Emma Lake Artist's Workshops
The Emma Lake Artists' Workshops are affiliated with the University of Saskatchewan.-Workshop Leaders by Date: :1954-1955 Beginnings: Arthur McKay Kenneth Lochhead*195 Jack Shadbolt *1956 Joe Plaskett The Emma Lake Artists' Workshops are affiliated with the University of...
which became the genesis of the Emma Lake Kenderdine Campus which was named in his honour. Kenderdine's passion for the "wilderness" of northern Saskatchewan, and his enthusiasm for attracting people to his summer art camps, corresponded with the beginnings of the local tourist industry.
Also in 1936, a School of Fine Art was established at Regina College, now the Regina Conservatory of Music, by Norman MacKenzie
Norman MacKenzie
Norman Archibald Macrae MacKenzie, CC, CMG, MM, CD, QC, FRSC was the President of the University of British Columbia from 1944 to 1962, and a Senator from 1966 to 1969.-Biography:...
, who, as part of his bequest, appointed Kenderdine as the School's first head and curator of the gallery, which he held until his death in Regina on 3 August 1947.
Legacy
In 1991 the University of Saskatchewan named the Kenderdine Art Gallery in his honour, thanks to a bequest by his daughter, Mae Beamish. His works can also be seen in the Glenbow MuseumGlenbow Museum
The Glenbow Museum in Calgary is one of Western Canada's largest museums, with over 93,000 square feet of exhibition space in more than 20 galleries, showcasing a selection of the Glenbow's collection of over a million objects....
, the Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery
Norman MacKenzie Art Gallery
The MacKenzie Art Gallery is located in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. The MacKenzie Art Gallery has over of space, with eight galleries totaling . It has modern technical areas including conservation lab, workshop, preparation rooms and vault, a 185-seat theatre, public resource centre, gift shop...
, the Mendel Art Gallery
Mendel Art Gallery
The Mendel Art Gallery is a major creative cultural centre in City Park, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, opened in 1964. Housing a permanent collection of works of local, regional and national significance, the Mendel is also known for its public programs for all ages. Its current executive director and...
and the National Gallery of Canada
National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada , located in the capital city Ottawa, Ontario, is one of Canada's premier art galleries.The Gallery is now housed in a glass and granite building on Sussex Drive with a notable view of the Canadian Parliament buildings on Parliament Hill. The acclaimed structure was...
.
Sources
- Kenderdine, Augustus (1870-1947), The Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan
- Augustus Kenderdine 1870–1947, by Keith Bell, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon 1991.
- The Blackpool Times
- 25 November 1891, page 5e&f
- 30 November 1892, page 8f-g
- 21 November 1894, page 5h
- 28 November 1894, page 5d-e
- 4 March 1896, page 6e-f
- 18 March 1896, page 7i
- 8 November 1899, page 4h
- 23 April 1902, page 4h
- Gazette and News for Blackpool, Fleetwood, Lytham, St. Annes, Poulton and the Fylde District
- 5 November 1897, page 8e&f
- 6 November 1897, page 5b-f
- 31 January 1899, page 3e
- The Blackpool Herald
- 1 January 1886, page 8e
- 3 December 1901, page 5b-c
- The Blackpool Times and Fylde Observer
- 4 December 1901, page 5f&g