Oct 1, 2024

Mary Wrinch’s miniature portraits at Art Windsor-Essex

AWE adds new additions to the AGO’s exhibition of miniature portraits on ivory by Mary Wrinch 

By Khadra Ahmed
This miniature watercolour portrait on ivory by Mary Wrinch features a women sitter from the chest upwards. She is wearing a light blue top and a large black hat with yellow flowers. The hat is tied to her chin with a yellow ribbon

Mary E. Wrinch. Untitled Portrait, unknown. watercolour on ivory, Overall: 7.6 x 6.3 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Gift of Rheta and Gordon Conn, Richmond Hill, 1973. Photo © AGO. 73/12.17

Small but impactful, the AGO’s beloved collection of miniature watercolour portraits on ivory by Canadian Painter Mary Wrinch (1877 – 1969) headed South this past summer.   

The AGO’s exhibition Mary Wrinch: Painted from Life is now on its third showing, this time in collaboration with Art Windsor-Essex (AWE). In 2020, the AGO showcased its collection of Wrinch’s miniature watercolour portraits on ivory to the public for the first time. Since then, the exhibition has travelled to the Art Gallery of Sudbury, and recently went on the road again this summer to AWE, where the exhibition will be on view until October 20.  

In this current showing, AWE and the AGO bring together both their collections of Wrinch’s miniature watercolour ivory portraits alongside the watercolour paintings Spring Landscape (1908) and Young Woman with Bonnet (Miss Alice Carter?) (1910) from AWE’s collection. This exhibition showcases the impressive breadth of Wrinch’s practice as a leading painter and printmaker in the 1900s. It represents AWE and the AGO’s joint interest in filling a historical gap in the representation of Canadian women artists. 

An image of Mary Wrinch's watercolour painting Young Woman with Bonnet (Miss Alice Carter?). It features a young woman dressed in a green and blue dress with a straw colour bonnet

Mary Wrinch, Young Woman with Bonnet (Miss Alice Carter?), 1910, watercolour on ivory. Collection of Art Windsor-Essex. Gift of Joan and W. Ross Murray, 1983.1983.019

Wrinch’s influence and impact are seldom talked about. Wrinch was a prominent figure in Toronto’s early art scene, navigating the male-dominated profession to become one of the first paid women artists in the city. Born in the United Kingdom in 1877, Wrinch immigrated with her family to Toronto at the age of 8. In 1890, she began studying at OCAD, previously known as the Ontario Society of Artists and the Women’s Art Association of Canada. There, she studied painting and printmaking alongside fellow artists Laura Muntz Lyall and Robert Holmes. 

An image of Mary Wrinch's untitled miniature watercolour portrait of a woman sitter. She is wearing a pink dress and her brown hair is in a bun

Mary E. Wrinch. Untitled Portrait, unknown. watercolour on ivory, Overall: 9.5 x 7 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Gift of Rheta and Gordon Conn, Richmond Hill, 1973. Photo © AGO. 73/12.4

Wrinch trailblazed the path for Canadian landscape painters. A decade before the Group of Seven, she was the first to capture the beauty of Northern Ontario. She was also a leading artist in watercolour portraiture, as showcased in Painted from Life.  

Wrinch commissioned her miniature ivory portraits for $30, affording herself a financial independence that was rare at the time for women artists. Each ivory portrait in the exhibition is under 10 square centimetres, some with brushstrokes as thin as a single hair. Inspiring the title of this exhibition, Wrinch set herself apart from other portraitists by highlighting that her work was painted from life, rather than photographs.

An image of Mary Wrinch's watercolour painting Spring Landscape. It features a large tree on a small hill that is blooming flowers

Mary Wrinch, Spring Landscape, 1908, watercolour on ivory. Collection of Art Windsor-Essex. Gift of Joan and W. Ross Murray, 1983. 1983.018

While small, these portraits are filled with complex details of her sitters. Wrinch was said to value colour above all else in her work, and in these miniature portraits, she used vibrant colour to express the modern spirit of her sitters. While the identities of these women are unknown, these miniature portraits feature fellow members of the Toronto arts community. These portraits provide a unique window into feminine self-expression during this period, demonstrating her sitters’ unique styles. 

This miniature watercolour portrait on ivory by Mary Wrinch features a women sitter from the chest upwards. She is wearing a yellow dress and has short red hair

Mary E. Wrinch. Untitled Portrait, unknown. watercolour on ivory, Overall: 6.4 × 5.1 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Gift of Rheta and Gordon Conn, Richmond Hill, 1973. Photo © AGO. 73/12.12

This miniature watercolour portrait on ivory by Mary Wrinch features a women sitter from the shoulders upward. She is wearing a white frilly colour and her brown hair is in an updo

Mary E. Wrinch. Untitled Portrait, unknown. watercolour on ivory, Overall: 5.4 x 6.4 cm. Art Gallery of Ontario. Gift of Rheta and Gordon Conn, Richmond Hill, 1973. Photo © AGO. 73/12.5

Reflecting on Painted from Life, AWE’s Executive Director Jennifer Matotek shared with Foyer:” AWE was delighted by the opportunity to present our Mary Wrinch miniatures on ivory alongside the AGO’s remarkable collection of miniature portraits by Mary Wrinch. Wrinch is an important woman artist, and one of the first to earn a living through her practice. We thank the AGO for sharing Mary Wrinch: Painted from Life, and for shining a light on this under-recognized Canadian artist.” 

Visit Mary Wrinch: Painted from Life at the Artist Windsor-Essex until October 20, 2024.  

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