Helen McLean

Canadian author and painter (1927–2017)

Helen McLean
Born	1927 (1927) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died	February 7, 2017(2017-02-07) (aged 89–90) Etobicoke, Ontario, Canada
Occupation(s)	Author, painter
Known for	Details From a Larger Canvas

Helen McLean (1927 – February 7, 2017) was a Canadian author and painter, known for her autobiographical Details From a Larger Canvas.

Biography

Helen McLean was born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1927.^[1] As a teenager, in 1940, she studied under Dorothy Stevens at an art class arranged by the Women's Art Association.^[2] She attended the University of Toronto, where she earned a B.A., and gained an M.A at the University of Calgary.

She married Ross McLean, and had three children.^[3]

McLean became an artist, writer, art critic, and teacher.^[1] She wrote two autobiographical books, Sketching from Memory: A Portrait of My Mother (1994) and Details from a Larger Canvas (2001).^[3] Her second book describes her struggles against the expectations she had set for herself, or that had been set for a woman by her family or society.^[4] Her 1998 novel Of all the Summers describes the experiences of a woman, Rachel, during different periods of her life. Rachel is now in mid-life and is rediscovering herself. The lyrical novel recalls her earlier relationships and work.^[5]

McLean's 2003 novel Significant Things was short-listed for the 2004 Commonwealth Writers Prize Best Book Award, Caribbean and Canada Region.^[6]

McLean died in Etobicoke, Ontario on February 7, 2017.^[7]^[8]

Paintings

McLean's paintings have been exhibited widely in Canada.^[9]^[1] They are held in private and corporate collections that include the Bank of Canada in Ottawa. Her portrait of Margaret Laurence hangs in the Margaret Laurence Home in Neepawa, Manitoba.

Publications

McLean published articles, essays and reviews in The Globe and Mail, the National Post, Brick, Quill & Quire, Books in Canada, the Literary Review of Canada, Room of One's Own and Ars Medica.

McLean's published books include:

McLean, Helen (1994-01-01). Sketching from Memory: A Portrait of My Mother. Oberon Press. ISBN 978-0-88750-974-2.
McLean, Helen (1998). Of All the Summers: A Novel. Women's Press. ISBN 978-0-88961-235-8.
McLean, Helen (2001-04-01). Details from a Larger Canvas. Dundurn. p. 41. ISBN 978-1-4597-1457-1. Retrieved 2014-07-03. (autobiography)
McLean, Helen (2003-04-01). Significant Things: A Novel. Dundurn. ISBN 978-1-55488-607-4.
McLean, Helen (2008). Just Looking: And Other Essays. Seraphim Editions. ISBN 978-0-9808879-2-1.

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c Edwards & Stewart 2000, p. 118.
^ McLean 2001, p. 41-42.
^ ^a ^b Gale 2004, p. 253.
^ Wilson 2001, p. 63.
^ Feminist Bookstore News 1998, p. 3.
^ Significant Things, Dundurn Press.
^ "In Memory of Helen McLean". Newediuk Funeral Home. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
^ "Helen McLean obituary". Echovita. Retrieved 31 March 2023.
^ Brick 1996, p. 63.

Sources

Brick. Applegarth Follies. 1996. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
Edwards, Caterina; Stewart, Kay Lanette (2000). "Helen McLean". Wrestling with the Angel: Women Reclaiming Their Lives. Red Deer Press. ISBN 978-0-88995-201-0.
Feminist Bookstore News. Feminist Bookstore News. 1998. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
Gale, Thomson (2004-09-01). "McLEAN, Helen 1927". Contemporary Authors: A Bio-Bibliographical Guide to Current Writers in Fiction, General Nonfiction, Poetry, Journalism, Drama, Motion Pictures, Television, and Other Fields. Gale / Cengage Learning. ISBN 978-0-7876-6704-7. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
"Significant Things". Dundurn Press. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
Wilson, Joyce M. (2001). Canadian Book Review Annual. Peter Martin Associates. ISBN 9780968242179. Retrieved 2014-08-06.