The Canadian Magpie

Dr. William Henry Drummond By descent to the current Private Collection, Ontario

Dr. William Henry Drummond was an important supporter of Frederick Coburn at various points in the artist’s career. Aware of Coburn’s artistic talent at an early age, Drummond helped direct and advise on the young artist’s training. By the late 1890s, Drummond had gained notoriety for his poetry, and recommended Coburn to the G.O. Publishing Company in New York for illustration work. Coburn produced visuals for Drummond’s first volume of poetry on life in rural Quebec, “The Habitant” (1897). This project involved spending weeks living with habitant families, recording their daily life and capturing their inner lives in intimate details. He went on to illustrate all of Drummond’s subsequent work. Not only did this aid in the success of Coburn’s career as an illustrator, it also helped to fund his studies abroad. Coburn’s illustrations for Drummond’s poems often consisted of black and white oil paintings, and a number of these works, among others, were incorporated into the private collection of the Drummond family.