Portrait of Carol by Charlotte Mount Brock Schreiber

Provenance:
Private Collection, Calgary
Masters Gallery, Calgary
Private Collection, Calgary

Exhibited:
“Charlotte Schreiber Retrospective”, Erindale College, Toronto, 1985, no. 26
“Faces of Canada”, Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies, Banff, Alberta, 21 February‒4 April 2004 (loaned by T. & E. Godfrey)

Born in 1834 in England. Charlotte Mount Brock Schreiber was encouraged by her father to study art in London in 1850-55 at Carey’s School of Art. Upon getting married and moving to Toronto, she quickly immersed herself in the Canadian art world. In 1876 she was elected to the Ontario Society of Artists; the following year she was the only woman on the board of the Ontario School of Art and from 1877 to 1880 its sole woman teacher. Schreiber was also appointed as the first female member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, yet was still prohibited from attending any meetings.

Schreiber was known for her realistic, popular scenes from literature and everyday life. She painted animals, portraits, as well as sentimental and historical scenes. “Portrait of Carol” is a romantic depiction of a young girl in formal dress, holding a wildflower in a forest. The intricate pastel composition dates to 1885, one year after the Schreiber family moved to a farm near Springfield (now Mississauga) on the Credit River. The artist set up a studio in her home, where she privately tutored many young artists including George Agnew Reid, Beatrice Mary Walker and Ernest Thompson Seton.