Markham Receives Major Gift of $1.4 Million for The Varley-McKay Art Foundation

Markham - September 11, 2007 – The Varley-McKay Art Foundation has received a major gift of $1.4 million from donor Wallace Joyce in support of the Varley Art Gallery of Markham, now celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Ten years ago, The Varley Art Gallery of Markham was built by our community inspired by a gift of over $1.2 million from Kathleen Gormley McKay, along with her art collection. Mrs. McKay, who lived in a heritage home in Unionville, was related to one of Markham’s original founding families, which first settled in the area in the 1790s. Donor Wallace Joyce shares similar family connections to Markham, with his Pennsylvanian German ancestors, the Bartholomews, joining leader William Berczy as original settlers of the community at the end of the 18th century.

Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti said, “This extraordinarily generous gift is wonderful. It’s a testament to the reputation the Varley Gallery has earned during its short 10-year history. The Gallery is a major cultural attraction, not only in Markham, but in Ontario. It is a living example of Markham’s motto – Leading while Remembering. The Gallery honours the work of renowned Canadian Group of Seven artist Frederick Varley and actively seeks out and exhibits the works of contemporary Canadian artists from a broad spectrum of cultural backgrounds.”

Varley-McKay Foundation Chairman Howard Back said, “This gift is an enormous vote of confidence in our Gallery. The Varley is one of the most successful in Ontario. This donation will allow us to continue to expand our horizons and keep the Gallery firmly in the forefront of the province’s cultural attractions.”

The family connections of Mr. Joyce to Markham and Kathleen Gormley (McKay) are many. Kathleen Gormley grew up on a farm near Unionville and as a little girl often played with Ethel and Nellie Armitage in the Main Street, Unionville home of Mary Armitage. The older Armitage daughter, Edith, later married James Joyce and became Wallace Joyce’s mother. Edith was an elementary school teacher in Markham from 1904 to 1908, teaching a young Kathleen Gormley in 1906. Although Mr. Joyce himself never lived in Markham, he said, in making his donation, “I think through my family connections, before the war, I was related to half the community.” His affection for the Varley Gallery serves both his love for art and community as well as a tribute to his mother’s childhood playmate, Kathleen Gormley (later McKay). As a young man at university, Mr. Joyce had the opportunity, through his Unionville family connections, to meet both Mrs. McKay and artist Fred Varley on several occasions. Mr. Joyce’s love of art was shown through the Varley Gallery’s 2005 exhibition Peaks and Totems which was accompanied by a publication written by Varley Gallery curator Katerina Atanassova.

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The Varley-McKay Art Foundation, originally established through the endowment from Kathleen McKay, supports the art acquisitions, programs and exhibitions of the Varley Art Gallery of Markham. The Gallery, located in historic Unionville (Markham), is focusing its 10th anniversary celebrations around the major exhibition “F.H. Varley Portraits: Into the Light” which will travel across Canada over the next 10 months. The Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 12 noon to 5 p.m.

For more information contact:

John Ryerson, Gallery Director
905-477-9511, ext. 233
mailto:jryerson@markham.ca

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