Joyce Wieland(1931-1998)Filmmaker, Mixed Media Artist

The Maple Leaf ForeverMixed media1972

Born in Toronto in 1931, Joyce Wieland studied commercial art at the city's Central Technical School.

Returning to Canada from a trip to Europe, where her exposure to art would serve as inspiration, Wieland landed a job as a film animator for a small private firm. There she met her husband, Michael Snow, an internationally recognized avant-garde filmmaker.

Wieland's early work reflects the influence of an abstract expressionist genre. This style was commonly associated with post-World War II American art and referred to all types of non-geometric abstraction from artists such as Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, the latter being one of Wieland's acknowledged models.

As the 1960s progressed, Wieland began exploring different themes and various media as means of expression. Lithography, quilts, constructions, assemblages, embroidery, knitting, cartoons and collages became her canvas. The use of traditional female handicraft was significant during this period of her career.

In 1987, the Art Gallery of Ontario mounted a major travelling retrospective exhibition of Wieland's works, its first of a living Canadian female artist. In addition to this event, Wieland was awarded the Toronto Arts Foundation's Visual Arts Award for 1987.

Joyce Wieland died in 1998. Her career extended over many decades and influenced many that followed in her path. During a rare interview, Wieland remarked that all of her art is autobiographical and that it emphasizes the importance of human interaction for society's well being.