John McEwen is an Ontario artist who was received his education at McMaster University (1965) and the Ontario College of Art (1966–70). Known for his interventions in the public space, he has created Ballad of Ice and Water in Toronto (2008–09), River as Thread, Canoe as Needle at the Canadian embassy in Berlin (2004), and Speaker’s Circle, an artwork offered to Australia for its centenary by Canada (2004). McEwen’s work has also been on display at the Sydney Biennale and the Utsukushigahara Open-Air Museum in Japan.
Artwork description
Installed in 1966 as part of Quebec’s pioneering program to integrate art into architecture, McEwen’s distinctive abstract style is well represented in the windows he created for the east wall of the first building designed specifically for the then, Sir George Williams University. These windows are best appreciated in the morning, when the sun imbues the muted palate with a calming and spiritual quality.