In order to encourage their study and preservation, Lawrence Hayward undertook in the 1960s to document the work of late 19th and early 20th century Canadian sculptors by visiting them and photographing works in their studios. The works encompassed in the Hayward Collection of Slides and Documentation are significant contributions in an area of Canadian art that has been long neglected by critics and historians. Now there seems to be a growing interest in Canadian sculpture (Shirley Thompson in Victoria Baker, 1997) which will make the contents of this important fund of information a valuable resource.

Hayward's slides include many unpublished and rarely seen works, unique views and documentation of works no longer extant. His photographs, field notes and clippings preserve records that would otherwise have been lost or destroyed. In the course of his project he interviewed artists who have since died. His notes and the authentic oral history he collected rescue a part of Canada's cultural patrimony from obscurity. Virtually no catalogues raisonnés of these artists have been assembled.

Collections of Hayward slides and documentation are at the National Archives of Canada (2029 slides and documentation) and Queens University (2194 slides and documentation). Mr. Hayward retains a personal collection. The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) has105 Loring and Wyle slides and the National Gallery has 1089 slides from the Hayward Collection. None of these collections have been catalogued in detail. Concordia's total holdings of 5800 slides include 4000 slides and documentation formerly located in the Archives of Ontario. The database on this website represents our continuing effort to compile a detailed inventory. For more information on Lawrence Hayward and on the Hayward Collection of Sides and Documentation at Concordia University go to our site Canadian Sculpture: Coming of Age.

Linda Bien
November 1998

Baker, Victoria. Emanuel Hahn and Elizabeth Wyn Wood: Tradition and Innovation in Canadian Sculpture (Ottawa: National Gallery of Canada, 1997) 5.