Figure 1 Publishing

Art + Photography / Culture + History / Forthcoming

Canoe

A Collection of Canadian Art

By Anne Ewen and Rod Green
Foreword by Grit and Scott McCreath

A tribute to the iconic watercraft—an enduring symbol of national identity—as depicted through 200 years of Canadian art.

One of Indigo’s Most Anticipated Canadian Books

Pre-Order

Through various artistic representations, the canoe has evolved from a vessel of labour to a contemporary symbol of solitude, the subconscious, exploration, and connection to Canada’s immense natural landscape.

—Anne Ewen

Book Description

With its origins in commerce and Indigenous culture, and its status as a modern cultural emblem, the canoe serves as a link between Canada’s rugged history and its contemporary character. Its humble and elegant form has long inspired artists to illustrate its journeys through waterways past and present, building a rich visual archive of the role the canoe played in shaping our nation and defining our spirit.

The McCreath Canoe Collection, catalogued in this beautifully designed volume, spans 200 years of artistic output, encompassing 90 works from all provinces and territories (except the Yukon Territory) and covering all three Canadian coasts. Canoe showcases paintings, sculpture, prints, carvings, glass, ceramics, and birch bark canoes by 50 historical and contemporary artists, including such luminaries as Alex Colville, David Milne, Cornelius Krieghoff, Frances Anne Hopkins, Ernest Lindner, Illingworth Kerr, and Walter Phillips. Each full-colour image is accompanied by thoughtful commentary about the work and artist.

Canoe celebrates the vessel that has come to occupy a unique and shifting place in our national imagination, and that persists as a symbol of artistic inspiration and environmental connection.

Selected works from the McCreath collection will be exhibited at the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario in 2026–27.

Featured artists:

William Armstrong • Alan Bateman • Frederic Marlett Bell-Smith • Ken Birss • Peleg Franklin Brownell • Ken Campbell • Alex Colville • Garry and Rosemary Coulter • Ken Danby • Cameron Douglas • Amy Dryer • James Duncan • Tom Forrestall • John A. Fraser • Michel Fortin • Don Gardner • John Wedderburn Halkett • Alfred Worsley Holdstock • Frances Anne Hopkins • Charles Huot • Francis Hans Johnston • Fern Jordan • Augustus Kenderdine • Illingworth Kerr • Cornelius Krieghoff • Richard Lamartine • Ernest Lindner • Thomas Mower Martin • Jon McKee • Thomas Wesley McLean • Steve Mennie • David Milne • Thomas Wilberforce Mitchell • Edmund Morris • Keegan Nepinak • Lucius O’Brien • Susan Oomen • Wilf Perreault • Walter J. Phillips • Jane Reeve • Greg Shafley • Margaret Shelton • Joe Talirunili • Janice Iniskim-Aki Tanton • David Thauberger • Vance Theoret • Tony Vanderlee • Frederick A. Verner • John Francis Wilson

Author

Praise

“Pick up this gorgeous book and prepare for the portage and paddle of a lifetime. Anne Ewen and Rod Green will be your expert guides for this remarkable journey through the McCreath Canoe Collection. A canoe trip to treasure.”
—Roy MacGregor, author of Canoe Country

“This remarkable collection of art reveals how the canoe’s presence in the Canadian landscape has evolved through changing relationships, stories, and perspectives.”
—Carolyn Hyslop, Executive Director, The Canadian Canoe Museum

BOOK DETAILS

  • Hardcover
  • 10 × 9 inches
  • 184 pages
  • 9781773272948
  • $50 CAD / $45 USD
  • September 2026