Yousuf Karsh, ca. 1991, by Harry Palmer

Yousuf Karsh, as an internationally renowned portrait photographer, was invested Companion of the Order of Canada in 1990. Born in Armenia in 1908, he made Canada his permanent home in 1932 when he established a studio in Ottawa. Proud of his adopted country, he was second after Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King to receive Canadian citizenship in 1947 under the Citizenship Act.

Harry Palmer’s backdrop of the Peace Tower, seen through one of the arches of the East Block, reinforces Karsh’s identification as one of those icons by which Canada is known.

PA-182409