Judith Wright and Emily Carr

Knitting together two fascinating but entirely distinct lives, this ingeniously structured braided biography tells the story of the lives and work of two women, each a cultural icon in her own country yet lesser known in the other's. Australian poet Judith Wright and Canadian painter Emily Carr broke new ground for female artists in the British colonies and influenced the political and social debates about environment and indigenous rights that have shaped Australia and Canada in the 21st century. In telling their story/ies, this book charts the battle for recognition of their modernist art and vision, pointing out significant moments of similarity in their lives and work. Although separated by thousands of miles, their experience of colonial modernity was startlingly analogous, as white settler women bent on forging artistic careers in a male-dominated world and sphere rigged against them. Through all this, though, their cultural importance endures; two remarkable women whose poetry and painting still speak to us today of their passionate belief in the transformative power of art.

Anne Collett and Dorothy Jones

Acknowledgements List of Illustrations Introduction Chapter One: Self-Portraits, Painted and Written Chapter Two: The Artist as a Young Colonial Girl Chapter Three: Death of the Mother Chapter Four: The Voyage Out Chapter Five: Many Roads Meet Here Chapter Six: Jack McKinney: the equal heart and mind Chapter Eight: Lawren Harris: where the soul penetrates Chapter Nine: Shadow Sisters: Kath and Sophie Chapter Ten: Late Love, Late Style Conclusion Epilogue Works Cited