It was tough to get to Jasper in the early 20th century: there were few quick and safe travel options, and with no real roads running into town, options were limited.
But that isolation was also part of the park鈥檚 appeal鈥攁nd artists, like writer and novelist Agnes Laut, saw that.
Inspired by the beauty of Lake Edith, it was Laut鈥檚 dream to start an artist鈥檚 colony there. She was so set on the idea that she convinced Parks Canada to open up space to build 50 cottages on the lake, which she hoped would house her fellow artists.
Laut never saw her dream manifest鈥攖he same isolation that inspired her made moving people to Jasper difficult鈥攂ut some of her spirit must have remained at the lake. Over the years, creativity has thrived there, and a surprising number of artists have emerged from childhoods spent in those cabins.
Lake Edith has always produced an astounding number of artists, but in 1996 Wilf Walker brought Laut鈥檚 dream of an artists collective partly to life, when he formally organized a group of painters from the lake. That year, he, along with Jock MacDonald, Teresa Smith, Lynn Malin, Sally Baydala, Pat Foy, Carolyn Campbell, Paul Bennett and Anna Greer put on an exhibit at the Jasper-Yellowhead Museum and Archives. It was the first of what would become a biannual tradition at the museum, and marked the official birth of the Lake Edith Artists Guild.
This year, from May 4鈥�30, the guild is putting on its 10th biannual exhibit. Since the first show in 1996, the exhibits have blossomed from exclusively paintings to include everything from sculpture to photographs to fashion lines, photography and quilts. According to Greer, the exhibit features more than 50 works by 25 artists, all of whom are leaseholders at Lake Edith or direct family of a leaseholder.
Greer remembers spending her childhood summers on the lake, where art and creativity was everywhere.
鈥淎s a kid growing up we just ran like a bunch of wild [children] from cabin to cabin,鈥� she recalled. One cottage owner, Vivian Allen, had a pottery wheel and kiln in her garage, and the children would make little clay birds or thimbles, painting them after Allen cooked them in the oven.
鈥淲e just ran around, all doors were open, and we had this free lifestyle. On rainy days at our cabin our dad would sit down with some paper and we would colour around the fire. So, there was lots of opportunity to pick up a pen or a brush or a piece of clay,鈥� Greer said.
Now, Greer and the other kids have grown up, and are continuing the legacy of their parents. Baydala, who also showcases her work with the guild, is proud of that fact, and happy that the biannual exhibits help keep her and her fellow artists connected to the town of Jasper.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 really good to have an event like this that鈥檚 also open to the town of Jasper, because it鈥檚 good to have that communication and connection with the town,鈥� she said.
This year, she explained, the exhibit pays special tribute to the guild鈥檚 senior artists, displaying work from some of its earliest鈥攏ow deceased鈥攎embers, and immortalizing that work on greeting cards that Baydala hopes cottage owners will buy and keep as a reminder of the great work Jasper has inspired.
May 18, from 3鈥�5 p.m., the museum will host an official opening for the gallery, featuring a cash bar and a chance to meet the artists.
Trevor Nichols
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