Brantford in Brant County, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

John Hicks Whale

British-Canadian, 1829-1905

— Brantford's Grand Exhibit —

John Hicks Whale Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 25, 2022

1. John Hicks Whale Marker

Inscription.
Marsh Birds, oil on canvas, 1878

Collection of Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant

John Hicks Whale was born in Liskeard, England in 1829 and is the nephew of artist Robert R. Whale. He emigrated to Canada in the early 1850s and married his cousin Mary, Robert R. Whale's daughter, in 1856.

Though he worked primarily as a house painter and designer, he also won prizes for his oil paintings of people, landscapes, and nature at local fairs throughout what is now Southern Ontario.

In this painting, the viewer stands in the marsh alongside several red-winged blackbirds and a large heron. Whale's skillful use of composition and colour lend beauty to the birds, yet the nature of their flight seems slightly surreal, almost as if they are floating in space.

Brantford's Grand Exhibit is a partnership between the City of Brantford and Glenhyrst Art Gallery of Brant. This project brings high-quality reproductions of works from Glenhyrst Art Gallery's permanent collection into outdoor venues throughout Brantford. For more information about the project, including a map that identifies all locations, visit brantford.ca/grandexhibit.

This project was made possible with support from the Downtown Brantford BIA and Brooks Signs.

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list: Arts, Letters, Music. A significant historical year for this entry is 1829.

Location. 43° 8.31′ N, 80° 14.146′ W. Marker is in Brantford, Ontario, in Brant County. Marker is on Lynnwood Drive just south of Glenwood Drive, on the right when traveling south. The marker is located near the Mohawk Park entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 51 Lynnwood Drive, Brantford ON N3S 6S5, Canada. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 kilometers of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Rev. Peter Jones (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); The Mohawk Institute (approx. 1.3 kilometers away); Mohawk Village (approx. 1.5 kilometers away); Her Majesty’s Chapel of the Mohawks (approx. 1.6 kilometers away); Tomb of THAYENDANEGEA (approx. 1.6 kilometers away); St. Paul’s 1785 (approx. 1.6 kilometers away); Park Baptist Church (approx. 2.2 kilometers away); William Henry Clapp (approx. 2.2 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Brantford.

Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Brantford's Grand Exhibit

Also see . . . Robert Whale Family (National Gallery of Canada).

Robert Reginald Whale was born in the Cornish village of Altarnun, England, in 1805, and began drawing and painting before the age of 10. Whale married
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 25, 2022

2. John Hicks Whale Marker
The marker is on the right side of the weatherproof reproduction; Mohawk Park is in the background.
Ellen Heard of Bideford, England. The two immigrated with their six children to Canada in 1852, settling in Burford, Ontario. In Canada, Whale became known mainly for his portraits of local residents and for his landscapes of Dundas, Hamilton, Niagara Falls, and other centres in southwestern Ontario.
John Hicks Whale, the son of Robert Whale's brother, Thomas, was born in 1829 in Liskeard, England. He came to Canada in the early 1850s and in 1856 married his cousin, Mary, Robert Reginald Whale's daughter. Despite working mainly as a house painter and decorator, John Hicks Whale received prizes for many of the landscapes, portraits, and animal, marine, and historical paintings he presented at local fairs in southern Ontario towns, such as Paris, Brantford, Norwich, and New Durham. John Hicks Whale died in Brantford in 1905.

(Submitted on March 25, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

<i>Marsh Birds,</i> oil on canvas,<br>1878, John Hicks Whale image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, May 25, 2022

3. Marsh Birds, oil on canvas,
1878, John Hicks Whale

Credits. This page was last revised on March 26, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 25, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 43 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 25, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.