Sylvia Hahn (2 May 1911 – 2 January 2001) was a Canadian artist and head of the art department which is at the

Royal Ontario Museum The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is a museum of art, world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. It attracts more than one million visitors every year ...

Biography

Born on May 2, 1911, in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Sylvia Hahn was known for her uncanny mastery of many crafts. Called a Renaissance woman, Hahn worked in many mediums ranging from altar paintings to metal work.William Boyd Fraser, “Paintings by Sylvia Hahn,” The Robert McLaughlin Gallery catalogue (September–October 1995). She was the recipient of the Governor-General's Medal for Achievement (1932) and she spent most of her life working at the Royal Ontario Museum as head of the art department (1934 to 1976).Hooke, “The Hahn Family of Artists,” D & E Lake Ltd., Fine Arts exhibition catalogue (March–April 2001). She created a total of eleven

murals A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanish ...

for the institution.

Early life

Born to artists Gustav Hahn and Ellen Smith in Toronto, Ontario, Hahn came from a creative family. Her father was an instructor at the

Ontario College of Art Ontario College of Art & Design University, commonly known as OCAD University or OCAD U, is a public art university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its main campus is located within Toronto's Grange Park and Entertainment District neighbourhoods ...

and her mother, a sculptor and painter in her own right, was his pupil.David Pepper, “Portrait: Sylvia Hahn,” Alumnus OCA (Spring/Summer, 1980). Together they had three daughters, of whom Sylvia was the youngest. Her sister, Hilda Hahn, studied fine art and worked as an illustrator while her uncles, Emanuel and Paul Hahn, worked as sculptors and a musician, respectively. She trained under her father until she attended the

in 1929.

Education

After graduating from

Havergal College Havergal College is a private day and boarding school for girls from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 12 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The school was established in 1894 and named for Frances Ridley Havergal, a composer, author and humanitarian. The ...

(1917–1927), she attended the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

for one year (1928) before enrolling at the Ontario College of Art (1929–1932). Her education at the OCA resulted in a series of awards and honours, which led to her being appointed an associate of the institution upon graduation. She was then offered a job sketching artifacts for the catalogue records of the Royal Ontario Museum by its director,

Charles Trick Currelly Charles Trick Currelly (January 11, 1876 – April 10, 1957) was a Canadian clergyman and Archaeology, archeologist, and the first director of the Royal Ontario Museum from 1914 to 1946. Early life Charles Currelly was born on January 11, 18 ...

, which she accepted.

Personal life

When not producing art, she taught metalwork, was a judge for several craft competitions, and published books about nature studies and the cats she owned.>

Artistic career

Hahn worked in various media and was especially known for her murals and wood engravings. She was a member of the

Ontario Society of Artists The Ontario Society of Artists (OSA) was founded in 1872. It is Canada's oldest continuously operating professional art society. When it was founded at the home of John Arthur Fraser, seven artists were present. Besides Fraser himself, Marmaduke ...

, the

Society of Canadian Painter-Etchers and Engravers The Society of Canadian Painter-Etchers and Engravers (CPE) was a non-profit organization of Canadian etchers and engravers. History The Society of Canadian Painter-Etchers and Engravers (CPE) was founded in 1916 as a successor to the short-lived ...

, and the Toronto Metal Crafts Guild, among others. Her religious artworks, which include altar pieces and sculptures, can be seen in more than fifteen churches across Canada. Some of her mural work can be seen at Havergal College school for girls in Toronto and at Emmanuel College at the University of Toronto. She also illustrated books and was nominated as an outstanding woman of the Province of Ontario in 1975.

Death

Hahn died on January 2, 2001, in

Whitby, Ontario Whitby is a town in Regional Municipality of Durham, Durham Region in Ontario, Canada. Whitby is located in Southern Ontario east of Ajax, Ontario, Ajax and west of Oshawa, on the north shore of Lake Ontario and is home to the headquarters of D ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hahn, Sylvia 1911 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Canadian painters 20th-century Canadian women artists Artists from Toronto Canadian muralists OCAD University alumni University of Toronto alumni Canadian women muralists