Artist: Juanita LeBarre-Symington
Medium: Oil on panel
Dimensions: 16'' x 20''
​​​​​​​Location: Loft

Bidding on this artwork will take place at the Live Auction event, Friday, April 14. Tickets available at the link at dvsa.ca. Absentee bids can also be placed in advance – request a form at the school office or email bid@dvsa.ca. Limited phone bidding options also available.  

Biography
Over a 50-year art career, Juanita LeBarre Symington created a style all her own. Her paintings were not necessarily experimental, but are admired for the rhythm, design, and atmospheric effects. She was commonly found painting outdoors, even during the worst of weather. Her brilliant red signature or her iconic images of Hamilton architecture and Canada’s North are common identifiers of Symington’s artworks.

Officially named, Juanita Onoto Evangeline LeBarre Symington was born in Hamilton in 1904. She was known in the Hamilton arts community as being an avid and innovative teacher, organizer, and of course professional painter. From a young age, Symington was encouraged to draw by her mother and professional portrait artist, Charlotte Tutty LeBarre. By age 9, Symington began weekly lessons with Marion Mattice, where she mastered drawing and watercolours. Later, she studied oil painting with J.R. Seavey and John Sloan Gordon. By late 1930s, Symington was known in the Hamilton art community as a professional artist, which was quite an accomplishment for a woman during these times.

Notably, Symington was the youngest and most innovative President of the Women’s Arts Association (WAAH, 1894) from 1945 -1949. In her departing remarks to the WAAH, Symington stated, “We are responsible for the stir of growing art interest in Hamilton. The industrial city has awoken to the fact that it needs a meeting place for art, music and drama.” Words that still resignate with the City of Hamilton today. 

During her career, Symington had many solo shows at galleries such as Classic Fine Art Galleries, Mallory’s, and Eaton’s College Street Fine Art Gallery. Her work can be found in such collections as Queen Elizabeth II, the Art Gallery of Hamilton, Appleby College, Ridley College, and McMaster Museum of Art. Juanita LeBarre Symington’s Estate is handled by Earls Court Gallery, Hamilton.

earlscourtart.com/collections/juanita-lebarre-symington