Tags
Al Rashid Mosque, architectural heritage, art exhibits, Buena Vista Building, City of Edmonton Historian Laureate, Edmonton Alberta, Glenora B&B, Government House, Mactaggart Sanctuary, Marlena Wyman, Molstad House, Ortona Armoury Arts Building, Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre
This is the final of four posts where I am featuring three more of the artists and a selection of their sketches from the exhibit Sketching History: Rediscovering Edmonton’s Architectural Heritage through Urban Sketching. The twelve artists whose work is in this exhibit are members of Urban Sketchers Edmonton, and over 100 sketches of Edmonton’s built and natural heritage are featured in the exhibit.
Due to the pandemic, Edmonton is taking the same precautions as many other cities and countries around the world. The Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre and Edmonton City Archives are closed, where the physical exhibit is installed. The Edmonton Public Branch Libraries where the smaller exhibit has been travelling are also closed but fortunately there is an online exhibit to enjoy.
Now back to the artists:
Jimmy Golden is a born and raised Edmontonian, and has been a working artist for over four decades. His art education began at the Edmonton Art Gallery Saturday program when he was seven, and has continued through formal studies in Edmonton, Calgary, Toronto and Siena, Italy. He studied under master art calligrapher Chin Shek Lam, learning the fundamentals of traditional Chinese calligraphy which has influenced much of his art practice.
Jimmy has taught children’s art classes at the Works Festival and the Ortona Gallery. He has just begun to sketch with Urban Sketchers Edmonton, and has discovered new joy in returning to sketching after having painted in a non-representational style for many years.
Ortona Armoury Arts Building, 9722 – 102 Street, Rossdale neighbourhood. Sketches by Jimmy Golden
The Ortona Armoury is historically significant for two major layers of history: the Hudson’s Bay Company exterior and the Navy interior. It was built in 1914 by architect C.R. Sutherland for the HBC as a warehouse and stables. It also served other uses, including the Edmonton Pure Butter Company.
It was the headquarters of the Royal Canadian Navy Volunteer Reserves, one of the most active naval training facilities in Canada during WWII. In 1941, the building was commissioned the HMCS Nonsuch, and the Navy era floorplan and details have remained intact in the interior for 80 years.
By 1965, it became home to the Loyal Edmonton Regiment and was renamed the Ortona Armoury in honour of the regiment’s WWII battle.
The City of Edmonton took over ownership in 1977, and it has become an arts building for the last three decades. Arts group tenants included the National Film Board, Edmonton Folk Fest, the Film and Video Arts Society, and Trincan Steel Orchestra. It also housed private studio space, the Ortona Gallery, and public arts space.
The Ortona was designated a Municipal Historic Resource in 2004. It is now closed for code upgrade work.
Brenda Raynard is a professional artist working in painting, drawing and textiles. She’s had an active and varied studio practice since taking her BFA with Honours from the University of Alberta in 2000.
Born and raised in Stettler, Alberta, Brenda has lived in Edmonton for 30 years. Her upbringing in a small town on the Western Canadian prairie deeply informs her artistic sensibility. Brenda has exhibited nationally and internationally. Her art is held in numerous private and corporate collections.
Brenda’s been part of the Urban Sketcher’s Edmonton group since 2018 and enjoys sketching on site with other like minded artists.
(You can find more of Brenda’s artworks on Facebook and Instagram under Brenda Raynard or 21Konstruktions.)
Mactaggart Sanctuary, Whitemud Creek Ravine. Sketch by Brenda Raynard
The land for Mactaggart Sanctuary was donated by Sandy A. Mactaggart, through the cooperation of the Province of Alberta, the University of Alberta and the City of Edmonton. In a conversation with the original owner [William Strait], Mactaggart discovered that [Strait], who was elderly at the time, wanted the land to remain untouched for the benefit and enjoyment of the citizens of Edmonton. Mactaggart purchased the land, allowing Strait to live there until his death, and arranged for the donation of the land with a matching grant from the Province through the University of Alberta. The land remains as a sanctuary and wildlife corridor, not to be developed as a park, with rough trails for hiking.
Molstad House, 9633 95 Avenue, Bonnie Doon neighbourhood. Sketch by Brenda Raynard
Edmonton realtor Edward H. Molstad and his wife Addie built their home in 1912. It is a stately two-story brick and wood Four Square house originally built on 5 acres of land, surrounded by a circular driveway, fountains and trees, and included a carriage house and servants’ quarters. In 1931, part of the house was converted into apartments, but the Molstad family continued to live there until 1982.
When Walter and Jean Kipp purchased the house in 1988, they worked to restore it to its previous glory as a single family home. Present owners Scott and Erica Richards continue the care for the preservation of this elegant home.
The interior retains the original hardwood floors, oak panelling, sculptured ceilings, brass chandeliers, and fireplaces. In 1994, Molstad House became Edmonton’s first historically designated residential building, and was designated a Provincial Historic Resource in 1996.
Al Rashid Mosque, Fort Edmonton Park. Sketch by Brenda Raynard
Al Rashid, the first mosque in Canada, was built in 1938. The highest concentration of Muslims in Canada at the time was in the west and Edmonton was home to the largest Muslim community. Amid concern about preserving and passing on their faith and traditions to their children, local Muslim women, most notably Hilwie Hamdon, led the proposal and fundraising to build the mosque. An Edmonton Public School has been named after Hamdon. The mosque bears some resemblance to the style of a Russian Orthodox Church due to the hiring of a Ukrainian-Canadian builder, Mike Drewoth.
Al Rashid Mosque was built on the corner of 101 Street and 108 Avenue, but was relocated to 102 Street and 111 Avenue in 1946. In 1975, a new, larger mosque was built and by 1988 the original mosque was under threat of demolition. Local Muslim women again led a proposal and fundraising to move the mosque to Fort Edmonton Park, where it was formally opened in 1992.
Joanne Wojtysiak is a comic artist and illustrator based in Edmonton. She began sketching the people and architecture of Edmonton in the mid-2000s when she discovered Enrico Casarosa’s online Sketchcrawl events and became interested in journal sketch blogs. She joined the Edmonton Sketchers in 2012 after deciding to embark on a full-time art career.
Joanne is currently working on a young adult graphic novel in the comfort of her own basement, but can be occasionally seen sketching out in the wild. She lives on the south side of the river with her husband and a small herd of bicycles.
Buena Vista Building/Glenora Bed & Breakfast, 12327 – 102 Avenue. Sketch by Joanne Wojtysiak
Despite its name, this 1912 Edmonton landmark was built on the border between what are now Westmount and Oliver neighbourhoods on the southeast corner of 102 Avenue and 124 Street.
It was originally an apartment and retail space. Designed by architects Herbert Magoon and George H. MacDonald, the building had hardwood floors on the upper storeys, high ceilings, and natural gas fireplaces and was considered a “desirable residential property”. Stone accents, decorative wrought iron railings, red brick, and curved parapets were also reminiscent of Italian-Renaissance style.
Ten apartments sat atop the retail space on street level which, over time, included the Corner Drug Store, Carrington Drugs, Standard Grocery, and James Nix’s City Grocery. A 1950 annex added a bank and more apartments.
Two of the well-known tenants in the apartments included World War I bush pilot Wilfrid “Wop” May, and Canada’s first Indigenous police officer, athletic star and World War I soldier, Alex Decoteau.
In 1994, the Freeland Family purchased the building and completed extensive renovations to the interior for a B&B and restaurant. In 2015, Edgar Developments, preserved the exterior brick during demolition, and rebuilt the façade on the street-level of their new 26-story apartment building, The MacLaren.
Government House, 12845 – 102 Avenue, Glenora neighbourhood. Sketch by Joanne Wojtysiak
Officially opening in 1913 as a residence for Alberta’s Lieutenant Governors, Government House was designed by Architect R.P. Blakey under the direction of A.M. Jeffers, Chief Architect of the Alberta Legislature Building, and constructed by the Department of Public Works. Designed in the Jacobean Revival style with Scottish Baronial elements, the three story sandstone building is grand in scale with asymmetrical façades, decorations, bay windows, balconies, and high gabled roofs with dormers. A large conservatory was built beside the house and later demolished.
George H.V. Bulyea became the first of six Lieutenant Governors to live there, and John Bowen was the last when ordered to leave in 1938 due to political differences with Premier William Aberhart. The house was then closed as a vice-regal residence.
During and after WWII, it was used as offices and living space for American airline personnel, and then a convalescent hospital and home for veterans. Through the 1960s and 70s, the house was used for government caucus chambers and official receptions. Much needed restoration and renovation work took place in the mid-1970s, and the Government House Foundation was formed. The Foundation was instrumental in having Government House declared a Provincial Historic Resource in 1985, and a National Historic Site in 2013.
Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre, 10440- 108 Avenue, Central McDougall neighbourhood. Sketch by Joanne Wojtysiak
The Edmonton Drill Hall, as it was originally known, was completed in 1915 for the Department of National Defense. It served as a long-term training facility for Canada’s military and was integral to the organization and mobilization of the country’s armed forces.
Designed by E.C. Hopkins, the first Provincial Architect, and D.E. Ewart, architect for the Federal Department of Public Works, it is an example of Baronial Gothic-style architecture, with stone arch doorways and distinctive corner turrets. The prominent central entrance archway opens to brick piers on either side, topped with sandstone cannonballs. Above the entrance the words “DRILL HALL” and “AD 1913 ARMOURIES” are carved in sandstone. The interior has a large convex roof with large, half-arched windows spanning its entire width.
The building was renamed the Prince of Wales Armouries in 1921. The space, home to a number of prominent regiments, became the property of the City of Edmonton in 1977. In 1991 the building underwent restoration and renovation to house the City of Edmonton Archives. Other resident organizations include the Loyal Edmonton Regiment Museum, Edmonton Heritage Council, and Edmonton Arts Council; it also serves as event space.
The building was designated as a Provincial Historic Resource in 1979 and a Municipal Historic Resource in 2004.
Thanks to the City of Edmonton, the Edmonton Heritage Council, the Edmonton Historical Board and the City of Edmonton Archives for their support of this project.
Reference sources for background history:
Ortona Armoury Arts Building
City of Edmonton Archives: RG-200, RG.17.1, RG. 17
City of Edmonton Planning & Development Department, Strategic Services, Planning & Policy Services, 6th Floor, 10250 – 101 Street. (Digital File: # 659646 – 003, pg. 136) https://www.edmonton.ca/documents/PDF/Rossdale_Historical_Land_Use_Study_Feb_2004.pdf
Ortona Armoury Historical Significance Report by Ken Tingley, 2009 https://ortonaarmoury.com/history/
Mactaggart Sanctuary
Remarkable Albertans: The Alberta Order of Excellence http://www.lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca/AOE_Legacy/Member/69/ShowVideo?modelId=69&videoId=1539
Molstad House
Edmonton Maps Heritage http://www.edmontonmapsheritage.ca/location/molstad-house/
Alberta Register of Historic Places https://hermis.alberta.ca/ARHP/Details.aspx?DeptID=1&ObjectID=4664-0104
Al Rashid Mosque
Edmonton Heritage Council, Edmonton City as Museum article by Shaylene Flanagan and Carolee Pollock https://citymuseumedmonton.ca/2016/09/27/little-mosque-in-the-park/
A New Life in a New Land: The Muslim Experience in Canada http://www.anewlife.ca/alrashid
Buena Vista Building/Glenora Bed & Breakfast
Edmonton Maps Heritage, Edmonton Heritage Council http://www.edmontonmapsheritage.ca/location/buena-vista-apartments/
Edmonton City as Museum Project (ECAMP), Edmonton Heritage Council https://citymuseumedmonton.ca/2014/12/17/buena-vista-building/
Government House
Edmonton Historical Board, Edmonton’s Architectural Heritage https://www.edmontonsarchitecturalheritage.ca/index.cfm/structures/government-house/
Legislative Assembly of Alberta https://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/lt-gov/house.html
Alberta Register of Historic Places https://hermis.alberta.ca/ARHP/Details.aspx?DeptID=1&ObjectID=4665-0394
Government of Alberta https://www.alberta.ca/government-house-history.aspx
Prince of Wales Armouries Heritage Centre
Alberta Register of Historic Places https://hermis.alberta.ca/ARHP/Details.aspx?DeptID=1&ObjectID=4664-0134
Canada’s Historic Places https://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=8487
City of Edmonton Archives, Parks and Recreation Dept Fonds: EA-746-1 to 101
Posted by Marlena Wyman
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