Merle Stewart McKee is a Canadian artist shaped by the land that nurtured her - from her birth in Flin Flon, through her idyllic childhood in Gilbert Plains, Manitoba, to her international experiences in New York, and her later life in British Columbia. The powerful influences from senior, respected doyens of the Canadian art world who recognized her talent and allowed it to flourish, who supported her experimental ventures, who advised and gave her active help and encouragement, led to her innovation, her portrayal of a wide variety of subjects, and her experimentation in and use of a diverse range of media. These mark Merle as an artist whose work deserves wider recognition for its very ‘Canadian-ness’.

Raised in a sma...