Limners donate their archives to UVic

On Oct. 4, members of the Limners artists’ group donated their archives to the university.

A Victoria-based artists’ collective, the Limners was formed in the late 1960s and incorporated as a non-profit society in 1971. The group has counted 18 artists among its membership, including painters, potters and sculptors, printmakers, collagists, a calligrapher, a textile artist and a poet. They have been a significant presence in Victoria’s artistic community, with some gaining national stature. The name “Limners” refers to European artists who created sign illumination and portrait paintings.

UVic has been collecting Limner works for many years and the University of Victoria Art Collections are the prime repository of their artistic work, holding almost 300 works by Myfanwy Pavelic, films by Karl Spreitz and a representative collection from each of the member artists.

The UVic Libraries hold a growing number of Limner archives, including materials from Robin Skelton and Herbert Siebner. The archives recently donated include minutes of the Limners Society of Artists and correspondence received by the group over its 40-year existence. They document the history and activities of the Limners and are valuable to students, faculty and community members interested in the development of art movements, the local art scene and specific Limner members.

Present at a reception held on the lower level of the library in a space adjacent to the new Maltwood Prints and Drawings Gallery at the McPherson Library were surviving Limners members Pat Martin Bates, Carole Sabiston, Jan Grove, Helga Grove and Alex Lavdovsky. Children of Limners also attended: Alison Skelton, (Robin Skelton), Angela Nielsen (Herbert Siebner), Anne Mayhew (Elza Mayhew) and George Grove (Jan and Helga Grove).

More photos: http://ring.uvic.ca/media/photo-essays/limners-donate-their-archives