Illingworth Holey Kerr

Illingworth Holey Kerr. b. Lumsden, Saskatchewan, 1905, d. Calgary, Alberta, 1989. Kerr has the distinction of being the first prairie-born artist of substance. He absorbed influences from a variety of sources, notably the Group of Seven (he studied under Arthur Lismer and F. H. Varley as well as J. W. Beatty and C. W. Jefferys at the Ontario College of Art in the mid '20s.) He painted the prairies in a Group of Seven manner in the late '20s and early '30s, before moving to England to escape the depression. He returned during the war and in 1947 was appointed head of the Alberta College of Art in Calgary. Taking early retirement in 1967, he lived and painted in and around Calgary until his death