We are excited to announce that the Agnes has received a donation of twenty-three stone-cut and stencil prints from Puvirnituq, along with funding to establish a new Research Studentship in Indigenous Art. Heartfelt thanks go out to Margaret McGowan, Artsci’78, for these generous gifts. Margaret, along with her husband, also created two bequests in their estate that will benefit Queen’s and the Agnes.

We asked Margaret about the inspiration for her philanthropy. Her response:

As a student at Queen’s, I visited the Agnes regularly to see the exhibits and enjoy the peace and beauty of the original house. When it came time to think about estate planning, my husband and I created two legacy bequests—one to provide funds for a research studentship in Indigenous art, and another to enable children and youth to participate in fee-based programs at the Agnes.

Recently, a more immediate opportunity to make a gift presented itself. For years I collected early Inuit prints from Puvirnituq, a small community on the coast of Hudson Bay in northern Quebec. I offered the collection of twenty-three prints to Queen’s, and was thrilled that Professor Norman Vorano was enthusiastic about adding them to the Agnes’s collection. He suggested that the prints would offer possibilities for programming, exhibitions, and academic and community-based research.

As a complement to this gift, funds were also provided for an active research studentship specific to Indigenous art, with a priority focus on Inuit art. I am hoping this funding will provide opportunities for Queen’s students to further their studies in art history, art conservation, or Indigenous studies; to enable research into the prints of Puvirnituq; and to benefit the collections and programs at the Agnes.

A selection of the Puvirnituq prints donated by Margaret McGowan, Artsci’78, will be displayed at the Agnes in spring/summer 2019.