Marguerite Porter Zwicker facts for kids

Mary Marguerite Porter Zwicker (born Porter, 1904–1993) was a talented Canadian artist. She was also a big supporter of art in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Marguerite was famous for her beautiful watercolor paintings of Nova Scotia's landscapes and villages.

Her artwork was shown in important places like the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. With her husband, Leroy Zwicker, she ran Zwicker's Gallery. For most of the 1900s, this was the only gallery in Halifax that regularly showed art to the public. It's still open today!

Who Was Marguerite Zwicker?

Marguerite Porter was born in 1904 in Pleasant Valley, Nova Scotia. She loved art and studied painting at the Nova Scotia College of Art. She even traveled to the United States to learn from a famous artist named Hans Hofmann. He was known for his "abstract expressionist" style, which means he painted feelings and ideas rather than just what things looked like.

In 1928, while still a student, one of her etchings (a type of printmaking) was chosen by the Society of Canadian Painters, Etchers and Engravers. That same year, she started teaching art classes at the Nova Scotia College of Art. In 1937, she married Leroy Zwicker, who was also an art student.

Her Teaching and Travels

Marguerite Zwicker taught painting at Acadia University in Wolfville. She also led special "painting and cultural tours" to countries like Spain, Italy, and Portugal. She became well-known for her watercolor paintings of Nova Scotia's scenery and small towns. Her work was shown at big art events, and she was a member of the Nova Scotia Society of Artists.

Zwicker's Gallery

In 1957, Marguerite and her husband Leroy took over Zwicker's Gallery. This gallery was started by Leroy's family in 1886. It became the oldest art store and gallery in Halifax. Until the 1970s, it was the only place in Halifax where local artists could regularly show their work to the public. The Zwickers ran the gallery until 1968.

In 1959, Marguerite wrote a book called On My Own. In it, she shared her thoughts and experiences from her travels in Europe.

Supporting the Arts

Both Marguerite and Leroy Zwicker were big supporters of the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (AGNS). In the 1980s, the AGNS was trying to get money to save and display the house of famous folk artist Maud Lewis. The Zwickers offered a large donation of $4 million to help with this project. In 1991, Marguerite had her own special art show at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia.

Marguerite Zwicker passed away in 1993 in Halifax.

How Marguerite Learned Art

In the past, many women went to "finishing schools." There, they learned polite activities like music, sewing, and watercolor painting. The Victoria School of Art and Design (VSAD) in Halifax was a great place for women to learn art. Today, it's called the Nova Scotia College of Art.

Marguerite Zwicker finished her studies at the Nova Scotia College of Art in 1928. After graduating, she taught there for two years. She learned from Principal Elizabeth S. Nutt, who was a well-known art supporter.

Learning from Other Artists

From 1931 to 1933, Marguerite taught at Acadia University. While there, she took a special art workshop with Stanly Royle in 1932. From Royle, she learned about using different color values and creating strong contrasts in her paintings. This workshop gave her new ideas and helped her develop her own unique painting style.

After teaching at Acadia, Marguerite took a break from her art studies. But in 1961, she went back to summer painting schools in Cape Cod and Florida. She learned from Elliot O'Hara, a famous American watercolor artist. He taught her how important it was to paint outdoors, right where she saw the scene. Marguerite's travels helped her learn more about art and experience different cultures.

Marguerite's Art Career

Marguerite Zwicker went on sketching trips to Europe with other artists from Nova Scotia. She also traveled a lot on her own to Europe, the West Indies, the United States, and all across Canada. She used these trips to study and practice her painting skills.

Her Book and Tours

In 1959, Marguerite went to Europe and kept a journal of her experiences. She also drew ink illustrations in her journal. When she came home, she printed one hundred copies of her book, called On My Own, and gave them to her friends. She especially loved Italy during this trip. Later, from 1962 to 1965, she returned to Italy with sixty students, leading them on cultural tours where they painted, studied, and explored.

A Popular Artist

Marguerite Zwicker usually painted three watercolors a week. Not many artists in Nova Scotia could make a living just from painting, but Marguerite was one of them. She became very popular. Marguerite believed in "art for the sake of art," meaning art should be created for its own beauty and meaning, not just for money.

From 1933 to 1937, she had a studio shop in Yarmouth. It was a place where she made and sold her art, but also a place for people to enjoy art. One of her big achievements was her work for Canada's first art magazine, Maritime Art.

Showing Her Work

Many art schools and groups were started between 1880 and 1950, like the Nova Scotia Society of Artists (NSSA) and the Maritime Art Association (MAA). These groups gave artists more chances to show their work. Marguerite was a member of the NSSA and the MAA, and she regularly showed her paintings with them. She also exhibited her work in the United States and at national shows like the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. Marguerite also had many solo shows of her own art. She didn't keep track of the paintings she sold, which makes it harder for art historians to study her work today.

Marguerite's Painting Style

Marguerite Zwicker mostly painted with watercolors. She focused on good technique, how she arranged things in her paintings (composition), and overall design. Her paintings often showed houses in Nova Scotia or beautiful landscapes from her home province.

Her watercolors often mixed clear, see-through parts with very bright, pure colors. Marguerite believed that "watercolor should never be reserved for quick preliminary sketches, nor necessarily should it be viewed as a more limited medium in range than oil." She thought watercolor was just as important as oil painting. Her paintings are often seen as examples of how skilled an artist can be with watercolors.

Watercolors were sometimes called a "woman's medium" because they looked lighter and more expressive. But it takes a lot of skill and confidence to paint well with watercolors. Marguerite herself said, "Anyone can paint in watercolor, but very few can paint watercolors well."

Marguerite and Leroy's Marriage

Marguerite Porter married Leroy Zwicker (1906–1987) in 1937. They both loved art and agreed that creating art was the most important thing in their lives. It was a hobby and a career they both enjoyed, and they built their lives around it. Leroy was also a successful painter, and his art was shown in many of the same exhibitions as Marguerite's. They often went on weekend sketching trips together.

From 1942 to 1969, the Zwickers ran the Granville Gallery in Halifax. Later, they owned Zwicker's Gallery, which was the only art place in Halifax that regularly showed public art exhibitions. This was a big achievement for them both. Leroy became ill in 1974 and passed away in 1987. Marguerite continued painting until her own death in 1993.

Art Shows and Exhibitions

Most of Marguerite Zwicker's paintings were shown in Nova Scotia. But she also had her work in traveling shows across Canada, the United States, and Europe. In the 1920s and 1930s, art shows in Nova Scotia often featured paintings of landscapes.

Ten Nova Scotian Women

In 1983, a group at Dalhousie University wanted to create an art show. It would feature artwork by ten Nova Scotian women artists, showing off their careers. Marguerite Zwicker was one of these artists. Each artist had made important contributions to art in Nova Scotia. Many of these women artists were not well-known, so finding and collecting their artwork was a challenge. The goal of Ten Nova Scotian Women was to highlight local female artists and help people rediscover their paintings. The show focused on art created by these women between 1880 and 1955.

Some of Marguerite Zwicker's works shown in Ten Nova Scotian Women included:

• Portrait, watercolor, owned by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
• Untitled (Old Sackville Church), watercolor, owned by the Public Archives of Nova Scotia
• Tranquility, watercolor, owned by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
• Gorsebrook, 1949, watercolor, owned by the Public Archives of Nova Scotia

Nova Scotian Pictures

This art show was put on every year by the Halifax Department of Education. In 1946, it traveled to about one hundred towns and villages across the province. About 35,000 Nova Scotians saw the exhibition. Marguerite Zwicker was asked to show some of her new paintings in this exhibition.

Tony Saulnier Exhibition

Tony Saulnier loved art and spent a lot of time building his own art collection. He was especially interested in art by female artists from Atlantic Canada. Saulnier created an exhibition to let the public see some of his favorite works. He specifically asked Marguerite Zwicker for new paintings to include in his show. He continued to ask her for artwork throughout the year. His favorites were her large floral watercolors, and many of them hung in his home for years.

Three of Zwicker's works shown in Saulnier's Exhibition were:

• At the Arm, 1936, oil on board
• Delphiniums, around 1985, watercolor on paper
• Calla Lilies, 1940, watercolor on paper

Spring Exhibition

The Art Association of Montreal held this exhibition every year. Landscapes were a popular subject in this show. Marguerite Zwicker showed her watercolors in this exhibition almost every year. In some years, both Marguerite and Leroy exhibited their works.

Art Gallery of Nova Scotia

In 1991, the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia created a special exhibition just for Marguerite Zwicker's artwork. The show was a way to honor her and her long art career. Bernard Riordon, the AGNS director and a friend of Zwicker's, said when she passed away in 1993, "Marguerite Zwicker was a role model ... the enthusiasm, energy, and public spiritedness she exhibited in all her endeavors will be missed."