John Hammond (1843-1939) moved to Sackville, NB, in 1893 to lead the Fine Arts Department at the Mount Allison Ladies’ College and to serve as Principal of the Owens Art Gallery. A pioneering figure in Canadian art education, he helped establish Mount Allison’s reputation as a centre for visual arts training and inspired generations of students.
An exhibitor at the Paris Salon and a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, Hammond was regarded as one of Canada’s leading artists during his lifetime. He created an extensive and diverse body of work, often returning to his favourite subject—the fog-shrouded Bay of Fundy.
Created in 2008, the same year Sackville was designated a Cultural Capital of Canada, the Sackville Arts Wall celebrates artists from the region who have achieved international, national, or regional distinction in the literary, performing, and visual arts. Every two years, a public nomination process and independent jury selection add up to four new members to the wall.
In support of Hammond’s nomination by art historian and researcher, Dodie Perkin, Peter Larocque, Art Curator at the New Brunswick Museum, submitted a letter outlining the artist’s legacy and enduring influence. The New Brunswick Museum holds many of Hammond’s works, which provide an overview of his contributions to Canadian art and the province’s cultural history.
The induction celebration, open to the public, begins at 6:00 p.m. at St. Paul’s Anglican Church Hall (doors open at 5:30 p.m.) and concludes with the unveiling of this year’s plaques at the Arts Wall site on Main Street, overlooking the Waterfowl Park.
