Mildred Valley Thornton
English Bay, n.d.
Chief Moody Humchitt, c.1940
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Thornton was born in 1890. Although she was born in Ontario, Thornton spent a good deal of her life in Saskatchewan and British Columbia, perhaps inciting one of her contemporary artists called her “as Canadian as wheat,” Thornton is famous both for her landscapes and her portraits of First Nations people, of which she did over 300.
Thornton transgressed the gender boundaries of her time, enlisting her husband’s help in raising their twin sons while she pursued her artistic career. She was also radical for her time as an early supporter of women’s and aboriginal rights. It for these reason that Thornton was, and remains, an under-appreciated Canadian artist.
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Sources: Janet Nicol Blog, Surrey 604, Mother Tongue Publishing
(Source: pegasusgallery.ca)







