Portage & Main in Winnipeg, Manitoba — Canada’s Prairie Region (North America)
No. 1 Northern
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 16, 2022
1. No. 1 Northern Marker
Commissioned by Public Works and Government Services Canada, No. 1 Northern is sculptor John Nugent’s tribute to the accomplishments of Western Canadian grain producers. Until the early 1970’s, No. 1 Northern was the name of the top grade of Western Canadian Red Spring Wheat, the wheat that made Canada’s world-wide reputation for quality. John Nugent’s inspiration was the fields of ripe golden wheat stretching across the rolling prairies. The sculpture is a metaphor for those wheat fields.
Réalisée â la demande de travaux publics et Services gouvernementaux Canada, «No. 1 Northern» constitue le moyen par lequel le sculpteur John Nugent a choisi de rendre hommage aux céréaliculteurs de l'Ouest canadien. Jusqu'au début des années 1970, le «No. 1 Northern» était le meilleur grade de blé roux de printemps de l'Ouest canadien. Ce fut ce grade qui permit au Canada d’acquérir sa de producteur de blé de qualité supérieure â l’échelle mondiale. John Nugent s’est inspire de la vaste étendue des champs de blé des prairies gorgés d’épis mûrs et dorés pour
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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Arts, Letters, Music • Industry & Commerce.
Location. 49° 53.657′ N, 97° 8.232′ W. Marker is in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is in Portage & Main. Marker is at the intersection of Main Street (Manitoba Route 52) and Pioneer Avenue, on the right when traveling north on Main Street. Marker and sculpture are located in the courtyard directly in front of the Canadian Grain Commission building. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 303 Main Street, Winnipeg MB R3C 3G7, Canada. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Nor'Wester (about 90 meters away, measured in a direct line); The Great-West Life Building / L’édifice de la Great-West (about 240 meters away); Northern Light Lodge (approx. 0.2 kilometers away); Union Tower (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Bank of Hamilton (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Robert Atkinson Davis (approx. 0.3 kilometers away); Early Skyscrapers in Winnipeg / Les gratte-ciel de Winnipeg (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Rowand Block / Canada Life Building (approx. 0.4 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Winnipeg.
Also see . . .
1. No. 1 Northern.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 16, 2022
2. No. 1 Northern Marker & Sculpture
No. 1 Northern is a large public art work in the form of a steel abstract sculpture by John Cullen Nugent, currently standing where it was originally installed in the fore court of the Canadian Grain Commission building in Winnipeg, in 1976. No. 1 Northern was intended to be a metaphor for fields of wheat, represented in multi-layer rectangular shapes and painted the "brilliant" yellow of harvest wheat, representing Canada's hardy top grade, red spring wheat hybrid of the same name that dominates the prairies in the fall.(Submitted on February 4, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. No. 1 Northern.
The work generated controversy from the moment it was unveiled, and even after its removal by ministerial order in 1978. In 1979, Meriké Wiler called it the most controversial piece of Canadian public art ever commissioned during the fourteen years of Canada's public art funding scheme. It was hauled away and cut into pieces on two occasions, before and after being installed in front of another federal government building. Almost twenty years after it was removed, No. 1 Northern was reinstalled in front of the Grain Commission building. Another two decades later, Di Brandt, Winnipeg's first poet laureate, suggested that as the Winnipeg Arts Council's contemporary public art program has developed, Nugent's work no longer seems risqué: "It brightens up the grey streets, and provides a nice horizontal homage to our Prairie landscape and agricultural heritage among all those tall vertical buildings."(Submitted on February 4, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 4, 2023. It was originally submitted on February 4, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 89 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 4, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
