"Tales of pioneer hardship and deprivation have been told many times. Yet still we remember in wonder, that people accomplished so much with so little; that men and women with simple tools, their bare hands, and their own inventiveness cleared the land, drained the swamps, made their own clothing and provided their own food. Through all these difficulties God was with them and they wanted their children educated intellectually and spritually." from Norfolk Street United Church history

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Experts to Debate, Discuss Canadian Portrait of Shakespeare

© All rights reserved.
"Sanders Portrait." Canadian Conservation Institute
Department of Canadian Heritage, 2001.

GUELPH, Ontario - November 27, 2013 - University of Guelph News Release - The face of William Shakespeare and its ties to the University of Guelph are the focus of an unprecedented conference being held in Toronto this week.

“Look Here Upon This Picture: A Symposium on the Sanders Portrait of Shakespeare” will share evidence gathered by U of G experts and others showing that a Canadian man owns the only portrait of William Shakespeare painted while the playwright was alive. Sanders Portrait of Shakespeare

Thought to depict the Bard at age 39, the Sanders portrait is owned by Ottawa resident Lloyd Sullivan, a friend and supporter of U of G.

“The University of Guelph has played a key role in the analysis of the Sanders portrait,”
said president Alastair Summerlee.

“After many years of effort, we are now prepared to share an insider’s view of how this research can enhance the world’s understanding of the impact of the Bard.”

It’s believed that Shakespeare sat for an ancestor of Sullivan’s, an actor and painter named John Sanders, in 1603. The portrait was held in the family for 400 years and at one time was stored under Sullivan’s grandmother’s bed. Sullivan inherited it from his mother in 1972.

The Sanders portrait was the centrepiece of a months-long exhibit at Guelph’s Macdonald Stewart Art Centre in 2007. It’s also the signature image of U of G’s Canadian Adaptations of Shakespeare Project (CASP), the world’s largest and most complete website about Shakespeare’s cultural influence.

CASP was founded and directed by Guelph English professor Daniel Fischlin, who has spent the past decade helping to authenticate the portrait and trace family connections between Shakespeare and Sullivan’s ancestors.

“We embarked on this journey to find the truth,” Fischlin said. Referring to scientific, historical and genealogical evidence, he said, “The cumulative weight of it is unprecedented and makes the portrait the rarest of all art commodities: the only image of Shakespeare painted during his lifetime that has survived the period. No portrait comes close or has faced the same degree of interdisciplinary scholarly scrutiny.”

The symposium, sponsored by U of G and CASP, will be held Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Munk School of Global Affairs in Toronto.

Speakers will discuss the history of the portrait and Shakespeare’s presence in Canada. Besides Summerlee and Fischlin, the symposium will include U of G professors John Kissick, director of the School of Fine Art and Music and a respected painter; and Robert Enright, University Research Professor in Art Criticism and one of Canada’s most prominent cultural journalists.

Panel discussions and talks will also feature journalists, scholars, gallery directors, museum curators, filmmakers, historians and costume designers discussing everything from the portrait’s provenance and context to its value and legacy.

“It’s in the best public interest to move this portrait into the public domain where ongoing research and debate can continue,” Summerlee said.

“Canadians also should be able to access this wonderful image in a properly curated setting. We hope that this symposium plays a prominent role in making that happen.”

More than a dozen forensic tests have confirmed that the Sanders painting dates from around 1600 and has remained unaltered. They include tests of ink from a hand-written inscription on a label identifying the subject as William Shakespeare and listing his birth and death dates.

Working with British genealogist Pam Hinks, Fischlin and his team have uncovered relations between Sullivan and Shakespeare and his closest associates that extend back thirteen generations. With Hinks, Fischlin and his research team have visited gravesites, uncovered and transcribed historical documents, examined major historical archives in the U.K., and interviewed Sullivan’s relatives. The full results of that work will be outlined at the symposium.

Fischlin learned about the Sanders portrait while seeking original Canadian adaptations of Shakespeare for CASP. He contacted Sullivan and obtained the right to use the image.

In 2006, the portrait was part of “Searching for Shakespeare,” an international exhibit by the National Portrait Gallery in London that toured North America. It joined the gallery’s famed Chandos painting and four other early “contenders” purporting to represent Shakespeare.

The Sanders portrait was also the subject of the 2001 book Shakespeare’s Face and of award-winning Canadian documentarian Anne Henderson’s 2008 film Battle of Wills.

Friday, November 15, 2013

CBC’S “MURDOCH MYSTERIES” Films at Wellington County Heritage Building

photo credit: Mike Hume via Flickr

GUELPH, Ontario November 15, 2013 An upcoming episode of the CBC hit television programme “Murdoch Mysteries,” was filmed in downtown Guelph today. Production shut down Douglas Street and the exterior of County’s Child Care office was the central location for the shoot. The heritage building was used as a 1900’s piano store. The television crew transformed Douglas Street into a busy marketplace.

“To be a top choice for location filming is more than an honour, it’s an economic contribution,” said Jana Reichert, County Economic Development Officer. “Crews shop and eat locally, bringing business to the community.

Wellington County has many diverse shooting options for production companies. We welcome future partnerships with the entertainment industry.”

“Murdoch Mysteries” is a Canadian drama television series, featuring Yannick Bisson as William Murdoch, a police detective working in Toronto in the early 1900’s. The television series is based on the series of novels by Maureen Jennings.

“The County would like to thank the production team at “Murdoch Mysteries,” commented Andrea Ravensdale, County Communications Manager. “Filming did not affect County business and this experience was positive for both parties. The County would welcome the opportunity to work together again.”

This episode of “Murdoch Mysteries will air on CBC in February.