Biography

Doris McCarthy (1910 - 2010) – Artist, Writer, Educator, Conservationist

Doris McCarthy – a Canadian artist known for her landscapes and depictions of the Arctic – began her artistic career in 1926 with a scholarship to the then-Ontario College of Art. Following her formal education, she began teaching at Central Technical School in Toronto in 1932. She was an artist, writer, teacher, as well as mentor to several generations of artists. She retired from teaching in 1972. During her lifetime, she was associated with Group of Seven artists, J.E.H. MacDonald and Arthur Lismer.

McCarthy joined the Ontario Society of Artists in 1944 and became its first woman president. She was also elected president of the Canadian Society of Painters in Water Colour in 1956 and was inducted into the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts in 1974. In 1983, she was proclaimed Canadian Woman Artist of the Year and was named a Member of the Order of Canada (1986). In 1992, she was a recipient of the Order of Ontario.

McCarthy spent most of her life living and working in Scarborough. She travelled abroad extensively and painted landscapes across Canada and around the world. Her work has been exhibited and collected in Canada and abroad, in both public and private galleries. She also wrote a number of books, such as A Fool in Paradise: An Artist’s Early Life, The Good Wine: An Artist Comes of Age, and Doris McCarthy: Ninety Years Wise.