Kim Ondaatje
Kim Ondaatje is a notable Canadian visual artist recognized for her contributions to painting, photography, and documentary filmmaking. Born Betty Jane Kimbark on October 2, 1928, in Toronto, she pursued her artistic education at the Ontario College of Art and McGill University, later teaching literature while creating her early works. In 1964, Ondaatje transitioned to a full-time artistic career, producing significant series of paintings that reflect the Canadian landscape, such as the Hill series, House on Piccadilly Street, and the Factory series.
In addition to her visual artwork, she made impactful contributions to Canadian arts through the establishment of the Canadian Artists Representation (CARFAC) in 1967, which advocated for the rights of artists to exhibit their work freely. Ondaatje has received several accolades, including the Governor General's Award for her outstanding contributions to visual and media arts in 2009. She has also produced documentary films, with "Factories" being among her notable works. Throughout her life, Ondaatje has remained engaged with organic farming and has produced a major landscaping project at her property, Blueroof Farm. Her biography, detailing her creative journey, was published in 2023.
Subject Terms
Kim Ondaatje
Artist
- Born: October 2, 1928
- Place of Birth: Toronto, Ontario
Contribution: Kim Ondaatje, a Canadian visual artist well known for her painting, photography, and documentary films, won the Governor General’s Award for outstanding contribution in visual and media arts in 2009. Her work has been exhibited throughout Canada, the United States, and England. In 1967 Ondaatje established the Canadian Artists Representation, which became known as the Canadian Artists Representation/Frontes des Artistes Canadiens (CARFAC). CARFAC was the first organization to create a framework for the free exhibition of contemporary artworks in museums and galleries.
Early Life and Education
Kim Ondaatje was born Betty Jane Kimbark on October 2, 1928, in Toronto, Ontario. Ondaatje attended the Ontario College of Art from 1947 to 1948 and graduated from McGill University in 1952. She earned a master of arts degree in Canadian literature in 1954.
From 1952 to 1964 Ondaatje taught literature. During this time she also completed a set of some sixty abstract and landscape paintings.
Artistic Career
In 1964 Ondaatje left teaching to paint full time. She completed three major series of paintings, each of which, in some way, focused on the artist’s surroundings and the Canadian landscape. The first, called the Hill series, includes twenty landscapes painted between 1964 and 1967. Ondaatje’s first solo exhibitions, at the MacIntosh Gallery in London and the Jerrold Morris Gallery in Toronto, took place in 1969.
Her second series, another group of approximately twenty paintings known as the House on Piccadilly Street, was produced between 1967 and 1970. Ondaatje exhibited these paintings in shows at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art and the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) in 1970. She also showed her work at the Ninth International Biennale of Graphic Arts in Yugoslavia, the International Exhibition of Graphics in Montreal, and a solo exhibit at Toronto’s Merton Gallery.
Ondaatje’s third group of fifteen paintings, the Factory series, painted in the early to mid-1970s, depicts large industrial landscapes. In 1973 Ondaatje also created a documentary film entitled Factories, which was purchased by the National Gallery of Canada and was included in the National Gallery of Canada and Ontario Arts Council’s film package of the best films of 1973.
In addition to Factories Ondaatje produced several other short films: Black Creek in 1972, Patchwork Quilts in 1974, Old Houses in 1977, and Where Bitter Sweet Grows in 1978. Her work is also shown in several books of photography, including Old Ontario Houses (1977), Small Churches of Canada (1982), and Toronto, My City (1993). From 1985 to 2000 Ondaatje also taught photographic technique and composition.
The first major retrospective of Ondaatje’s work since the mid-1970s, Kim Ondaatje: Paintings 1950–1975, was held at the University of Toronto Art Centre in 2008. In July 2013 Museum London, also in Ontario, opened a fifty-year retrospective of her work, spanning from the 1960s through the 2000s.
Personal Life
Ondaatje was married twice, first to the poet and translator D. G. Jones and then to the writer Michael Ondaatje. She has six children.
With an active interest in organic farming, from 1990 to 2003, Ondaatje worked on “Final Canvas,” a major landscaping project around her property, Blueroof Farm, in Verona, Ontario, which is a tribute to artists who have visited the property. This work was documented in “A Life in a Landscape,” a 2008 episode of the television series Recreating Eden.
Ondaatje's biography, Who is Kim Ondaatje? The Inventive Life of a Canadian Artist, written by Lola Tostevin, was published in 2023 by Sumac Publishing.
Bibliography
Blom, Brendan. “Everybody Can Be Creative.” (Cult)ure Magazine. Culture Magazine, 5 Feb. 2010. Web. 2 Aug. 2013.
Boutilier, Alicia. “Collecting Stories: The Heritage Quilt Collection.” Agnes Etherington Art Centre. Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Queen’s U, 2011. Web. 2 Aug. 2013.
“CARFAC History.” Canadian Artists’ Representation/Le Front des artistes canadiens. CARFAC, 2008. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
Light, Whitney. “Kim Ondaatje: Factory and Fiction.” Rev. of Factory series, by Kim Ondaatje. Canadian Art. Canadian Art Foundation, 31 July 2008. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
“A Life in a Landscape.” Recreating Eden. Merit Motion Pictures, 2008. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
“Kim Ondaatje.” National Gallery of Canada. National Gallery of Canada, 2013. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
“Kim Ondaatje: Bio.” Canadian Art Database. Centre for Contemporary Canadian Art, n.d. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
“Kim Ondaatje: Paintings 1950–1975.” University of Toronto Art Centre. U of Toronto, n.d. Web. 1 Aug. 2013.
“Prominent Canadian Artist Kim Ondaatje Featured at Museum London.” Beat Magazine. Beat Magazine, 2012. Web. 2 Aug. 2013.
Reaney, James. “Ondaatje Returns to London to Celebrate Her Art.” London Free Press [Ont.]. London Free Press, 18 July 2013. Web. 2 Aug. 2013.
"Who is Kim Ondaatje? : The Inventive Life of a Canadian Artist." Toronto Public Library, www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/detail.jsp?Entt=RDM4451361&R=4451361. Accessed 18 Sept. 2024.